Return of the Void
by Zorua Illusion
Summary: It's the end of the worlds... again. But this time, Blumiere, Timpani, and Daisy are along for the ride. How will this affect the events? Who is the mysterious "guy in green"? And why can't I sum up my own story? This story is done in honor of chuggaaconroy, whose Super Paper Mario Let's Play gave me the inspiration to write this. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Unpopular ship is unpopular. Darn it. So… yeah. Maybe a longer story this time. I don't know, I'm just making this up as I go because gosh darn it, why do so few people pay attention to this ship? It was so beautiful! And it still is! I just hope some others still wander this realm and will get some much needed fixes from this story.**

**And because I always forget, I don't own anything from Nintendo. Well, actually I own a Wii, a 3DS, and some games, but I definitely don't own the franchise. Otherwise, Mario would be meeting the Count and Timpani again.**

**Another thing, please forgive any smashed together words or misspelled words. My keyboard is not the highest quality, and while I try to catch the errors, I usually write late at night and am human, so mistakes are not uncommon.**

_Heads up: This story does borrow information from my other story, Fate. It's not required to read, just know that the Count and Timpani are in Daisy's neighboring kingdom called the "Flower Kingdom" (not sure if the area has an official name) and that Bowser Jr. is Bowser's biological child, and the other Koopalings are children he babysits, though he usually just addresses them as "my/the kids"._

_So after this half-page of notes, I hope you enjoy the story!_

"Bleck!" Blumiere stated as he stared at his glove, which was now covered in corn syrup residue thanks to an unclean bottle. He put the bottle down and removed his gloves, setting them on the kitchen table.

"Why are we making candy again, my dear?" the blue-skinned humanoid asked, adding in the correct amount of corn syrup into a pot before replacing the ingredient into its spot in the pantry and washing his hands.

"Princess Peach's birthday is two days from now, Blumiere. I know it seems a bit early, but the candies have to sit for handfuls of hours. They'll take awhile to make, but it will be worth it," his wife informed.

"It's a precise art," the Count observed.

"Just like magic, hmm?" Timpani laughed, her coffee bean brown eyes gleaming with mirth and understanding.

Blumiere chuckled as well. "Indeed, my lady."

So they continued, Timpani giving her husband instructions on what to do. It was an uneventful day in the Flower Kingdom, just themselves and presumably Daisy preparing their gifts for Peach's birthday.

Eventually, the candies were set out to cool for the final time. Blumiere threw his old gloves in the trash on his way out of the kitchen, fetching a new pair from their shared room upstairs before returning to his spouse, who was sitting on the couch. He sat on the opposite end as her, but they somehow ended up with Timpani reading a book between the Count's legs while the man in question meditated. The rest of the day continued in this quiet fashion, but Blumiere couldn't help but feel that something was wrong, or was about to go very awry. Days that seemed too good to be true usually were. That's why he was grateful for small tragedies (a broken plate, a misplaced item of great importance that caused a lot of stress until it was found, and so on.)

The feeling persisted through the next day, but he wasn't sure what it meant. Usually it just meant a storm was coming, but he couldn't tell the difference between an actual storm or if it was a metaphor. He told Timpani about it that night as they lay down to sleep.

She seemed thoughtful for a few moments. Blumiere's orange eyes watched her as she thought about it.

"There's not much we can do but be prepared for when it does strike. Don't let it eat at you too much, Blumiere." She reached out and ran her fingers through his dark hair, making him close his eyes from the pleasure of her touch. She removed her hand and he opened his eyes once more.

"Let's get some sleep. Tomorrow is Peach's birthday, and everyone's going to be there! It's been awhile since we've all been together," Timpani smiled.

It was true; the Mario Bros. weren't kidding about the crammed schedule. Two more kidnapping attempts had occurred during the few months they spent in the Flower Kingdom. Then someone else tried to take over the worlds. It was a busy life.

But Peach was determined to have everyone there for her birthday.

"Strength in numbers, right? They'll have to get through all of us!" She had said when Mario questioned the safety of it. He couldn't argue with the Princess's logic, so there they were.

"Of course, my dear." The Count kissed his wife before wrapping an arm around her waist and closing his eyes, smiling slightly as he felt her cuddle into him.

"Goodnight, my dear."

And with that, the two fell asleep, unaware of what would happen the next day…

**A/N: These two need more love. So I'm giving them some! I just hope the ideas I have work nicely.**

**Thanks for reading!**

**(Current length: 2 pages and 850 words in MS Word.)**


	2. Chapter 2

Timpani, Blumiere, and Daisy all jumped into the warp pipe with their presents for Peach.

The girls had laughed at discovering that they had the same idea of getting Peach something sweet for her birthday. Daisy had found some chocolate she knew Peach loved but had a hard time finding. A shipment had just come to the Flower Kingdom a few days earlier, so Daisy bought some, seeing the opportunity.

They, of course, emerged in the Mario Brother's garage.

"I never knew they played tennis…" Timpani commented as Blumiere helped her down.

"Sort of," Daisy informed as she too was aided by Blumiere. (Not that she needed it, but it was his upbringing to be polite, especially to one who had aided them greatly.) "It was another plot, and the only way to regain the Power Stars was to win a tennis tournament. I don't know if there's a fancier name for that, but that's what it was. I got to help 'em out with that one!"

Daisy made it known that she didn't really help the brothers. Not that she didn't want to, but the events usually go so quickly they can't even spare the time for a phone call to ask her, so she's usually unaware of the events in the neighboring kingdom until after they happened. Luigi was always sure to tell her all the details she missed, however. There were some events that had a bit of prep time before hand, but those were usually weird and whacky people who used sports or made them play a board game to fight them.

Daisy didn't bat an eye telling them those plots. The couple was thoroughly confused at that point, but weirder things had happened, they had decided, so they moved on.

By this point, Daisy had knocked on the door and they were waiting on the porch for the brothers.

They weren't waiting long, however. Luigi opened the door, basket in hand.

"Mario got up late. He'll be out soon," the taller brother informed, stepping out onto the porch with them. "It's a nice day, isn't it?"

"Peach sure is lucky to be born right after the cold spell!" Timpani exclaimed.

Everyone agreed with that statement. At this point, Mario walked out the door, adjusting his cap.

"Sorry about that. Shall we?"

"Of course!"

They began to walk towards the castle. The house wasn't too far, and Peach's party didn't start for a bit, so they avoided taking the pipes.

"What did you decide to give Peach?" Blumiere asked as they journeyed.

"We made a pie," Luigi said. "It's sort of funny, actually; she bakes cakes as large as rooms, but pies just escape her."

"It's a large coincidence that we all got her food," Blumiere noted.

Mario looked at him straight in the eyes. "What else do you get for a girl who can get anything she wants?"

Blumiere shrugged. "Something homemade, I would guess."

"Thus, pie." Mario nodded.

And so they continued on towards the castle. The Toad guards opened the door for the group cheerfully, saying "Hope you have a good time!" as they entered.

"Thank you!" Timpani shouted as they walked in. When she paid attention to surroundings, she gasped. This place was huge!

"Peach's Castle has been handed to ruler to ruler for several generations more than the Flower Kingdoms. As such, it's larger," Blumiere recalled. Daisy nodded in agreement.

"My great-great-great-so-an-so grandparents were actually citizens of the Mushroom Kingdom! But they liked the cold that came from the cold spell, so they moved there. But they stayed good friends with Peach's, an' so, here we stand!"

"The room is right up these stairs. Bowser and the kids should be here already," Mario informed, opening the door for everyone else. "You know the way, Bro?"

"Yep! Just follow us." Luigi took Daisy's hand and lead her up the stairs. Blumiere did the same for his wife, and Mario brought up the end, closing the door silently behind him.

"You'd think she'd get lonely in this big old castle," Timpani commented.

"Hah! She's hardly ever in it, and when she is, my girl's up to her eyeballs in paperwork!" Daisy laughed.

There was a door at the landing. Luigi opened it, revealing Bowser and the Koopalings already sitting around.

"Hello! Hey! Hi! Hey look, more people! Huzzah! Now this is a party! Yippee!" Were the shouts of the children that welcomed them. All of them had meet the kids before and played with them. The kids really loved the differences between the group's games as well. The Mario Bros. were, of course, classic, but now that Timpani was human, she revealed a certain talent for robotics, allowing her to fight as well instead of just remembering what Merlon had told her about the different enemies in the Mushroom Kingdom, preparing her to get the hero from there. Plus, jumping on enemies isn't just limited to just the two capped brothers!

The whole group started chatting. Blumiere's discomfort with the children faded after a few minutes and he joined his wife in playing with them, giving them rides around the room on his shoulders.

Peach walked in unannounced and giggled at the sight.

Mario noticed and signaled everyone, who simultaneously yelled "Happy Birthday, Princess Peach!"

"Aw, thank you all!" Peach exclaimed. The she joined in the conversation. Daisy declared it was gift time, saying "If I have to wait one more minute to give ya your gift, there's not gonna be a gift no more!" And thrust the bag into the Princess's lap. Peach laughed, used to such displays from her friend, before removing the tissue paper.

"Oh wow! Thank you, Daisy. You know I have a hard time finding it," Peach smiled. She hugged her friend.

"Aw, don't worry about it sugar! A shipment came in just a few days ago, how could I say no?"

Next were the brothers. They gave Peach the basket and retook their seats.

"Whoa… did you two make this… just for my birthday?"

Luigi inclined his head. "It was an honor, Princess."

Everyone but Daisy looked confused. Peach looked to the brothers for permission. Mario nodded.

"The recipe they use was their late mother's… they hardly ever make it."

"Oh." No one was quite sure what to say, but Blumiere didn't think this was an appropriate setting for the attitude that had gathered.

"What flavor?" was the first thing that popped into mind… and therefore, out of his mouth. Timpani gave him a look, but the brothers looked relieved, and Peach smiled as she answered.

"Cherry!" she exclaimed, surprising the couple.

"I would've thought peach," Timpani muttered.

Everyone laughed, but Timpani felt as if she was being laughed with instead of at.

"Funny thing… I actually don't like peaches that much," Peach giggled.

"Or apples for that matter. One time my girl drank some apple tea from my kingdom, and oh doggie! She nearly spat it halfway cross the table! The maids found it rather amusing, so they didn't mind cleaning it up or getting her a glass of good old iced tea!" Daisy recalled. It was hard to understand through the laughing fit she was having.

Timpani giggled at the image of Peach having a spit take, and even Blumiere had to admit he chuckled.

The Koopalings were next. Each one presented a card made for her with different materials- some used crayons, another used paint, Wendy used a lot of glitter, and some used colored pencil or marker.

"Thank you so much!"

Bowser was next. He gave Peach a pouch she could attach to her waist without squishing her dress down.

"Sometimes you're going to need something other than your parasol. And now you won't have to worry about your dress."

Peach attached it to her waist. "Thank you, Bowser!"

Timpani and Blumiere presented their present last.

"Oh? What are these?" Peach inquired.

"Salted caramels! They're a delicacy in my home realm. Go ahead, try one." Timpani gestured towards the box.

"Don't let it be said that I am afraid to try new things." Peach took a piece and put it in her mouth.

"Wow!" Came the muffled word. "This is amazing!"

Peach continued chewing. And chewing. Her face contorted slightly.

"Oh… perhaps I should've warned you… the caramels take awhile to chew… they're a bit like gum, in that regard, but you can swallow these."

Peach did just that. "I wasn't expecting that! But these are really good. Who taught you to make them?" Peach passed the tin to Daisy and nodded. The other princess withdrew a single piece and passed the pan onto the next person. This continued as Timpani spoke.

"My parents did… they loved making candy and would always do it for whatever occasion popped up. Caramels were always made for birthdays."

"They taught you very well. Thank you," Peach said sincerely.

Peach sliced the pie and divided one of the chocolate bars for everyone to have a piece.

"It's a tradition of my own," she explained to Timpani and Blumiere. "I don't have enough to share with the Toads, but it's too much for me on my own, so everyone gets a bit of what was brought if its food. The Toads will get a slice of cake I bake later on."

That started a conversation about personal traditions. Eventually, a question was directed at Blumiere.

"What did you do for your birthdays?" Peach asked politely.

"Ehrm… nothing?" Bluimere rubbed the back of his neck, somehow not dislodging his top hat.

Whatever might've been said next was lost, as there was a loud _CRAAACK _from underneath them.

A visage of purple, then they were gone, leaving only the food on the table.

**A/N: Dun dun duuuun! ****Hey look! Plot! It's very exciting, considering most of my recent works have been one shots…. Or at least, were meant to be. I tried, okay?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Nintendo franchise.**

**(Current Length: about 6.25 pages and 2,521 words in MS Word.)**


	3. Chapter 3

"Urgh… is everyone all right?" Bowser lifted himself off the ground. Affirmatives came from everyone, including the kids. Blumiere helped Timpani to her feet, as did Mario and Luigi with Peach and Daisy respectively. Bowser Jr. Helped Wendy up and the rest of the Koopalings got upon their own.

"Where are we?"

"The Comet Observatory," a soft voice replied.

The whole group turned to face a very tall woman with a black, puffy star floating next to her.

"Rosalina!" Mario exclaimed.

"I must say, I'm surprised you ended up here…" Rosalina spoke.

"'Ended up'?" Blumiere questioned.

"Yes…" Rosalina glided past them, motioning with her wand towards the holographic screen that once displayed the map.

The group followed.

"I must say, I'm surprised to see you here again, Bowser." Rosalina displayed no hostility, but she did have a sort of hardness in her eye when she looked back.

Bowser sighed. "That wasn't me. That was my relative, King Koopa. Even though he's not actually the King of Koopas… it was a rough time. He caught me off guard and well… stuff happened. I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused."

"Me too." Bower Jr.'s voice was soft and low, out of character for the little tyke.

"It's alright… it was rectified. And, little one, children cannot be blamed for wrongdoings, only taught that they are wrong."

Bowser Jr. nodded, but still walked forward to his father. Bowser put a reassuring hand on his back.

"Not to be rude," Blumiere spoke up, "But why did you say 'ended up' here?" They had arrived at the holographic screen.

Rosalina sighed. "There has been a cosmic disturbance… and it does not affect only this realm."

"So it was chance that we wound up here. But what brought us?" Luigi pondered.

"A void," Count Blumiere and Rosalina spoke at the same time.

"How did you know what a void was?" the black Luma asked.

The Count tipped his hat over his eyes, trying to hide his shame. "A dark time in my life… I used them."

Rosalina shook her head. "You are not using them now, and that's what we are concerned about."

"Holes in space have appeared. They seem to affect not only your world, but many others as well. We are unsure if time is stable or if it too is being reshaped," the Luma continued, "While not the first event in history like this, the range of it… it's second to one, and the story of that is long since lost."

"So, in short, unless we find and defeat or destroy the source, we're screwed?" Timpani deadpanned.

Rosalina nodded. "We're doing all we can to help. But there are only so many Lumas who can."

"Good thing we're not Lumas, then," Peach threw in.

"What do we need to do?" Luigi continued.

Rosalina bowed her head. "It is a great burden to place on you once more. I must apologize. I know you hardly catch a break."

Daisy shrugged. "Oh well. At least this time, we've got a lot more people on our side!"

"I hate to interrupt this pep talk… but an adventure is no place for children. Can you send them back?" Bowser asked, gesturing to the Koopalings.

"Yes… there is a Launch Star in the Garage."

"Can they use it without Luma, Polari?"Mario inquired.

"Yes. It's a special Launch Star, and should land you where you wish."

"Thank you." Bowser inclined his head and guided the children to the Launch Star, telling them where to think of.

"Tell her that the blue shell has struck. She'll understand."

One by one, each of the Koopalings left.

"Bye, dad." Bowser Junior said before he hopped in the star and left.

Meanwhile, the rest of the group asked Rosalina what they could do.

"You must find the source… I doubt you will manage to return here, but I can give you this." Rosalina pulled a familiar book from hammerspace.

"The Light Prognosticus?" Timpani asked, confused. "That doesn't make sense… its purpose was concluded, wasn't it?"

"If it's here, dear, probably not… even the Dark Prognosticus had empty pages. Knowing too much of the future is never a good thing," Blumiere said.

"The who da what now?"

"Prophecy books, Daisy," Luigi informed. "Apparently, we're now under those influences once more."

Timpani had opened the book at this point.

"Well, not quite, heroes."

"Merlon!" Timpani exclaimed. "How?"

"It seems as if I'm not the only one aware of the influxes… Rosalina, do you have any information?"

Rosalina shook her head. "Only that space itself is disturbed… some of the Lumas are crying. I must tend to them soon to make sure they sleep well."

"I feared as much… these voids are different from the last one you battled against," Merlon informed. "As for how I know Rosalina or am communicating through this book are questions for another time. But we need your aid once more, heroes! The entirety of existence depends on you!"

Daisy spoke up. "Just say the word, magic man! Where's the first stop and what are we looking for?"

"The first place you must go to is Lineland. I don't know exactly what you are looking for, but the Light Prognostics told me this:

_As the Sandman turns the fated wheel,_

_In this land past wounds will heal,_

_This will shine and shimmer and glow,_

_When the magician deals the final blow._

_This land of old,_

_Riddles will unfold._

_Go forth heroes, use all your might._

_For all worlds are doomed if you cannot unite._

The book you hold now is only a replica of the Prognosticus. I will research more and tell you what I find."

Rosalina nodded. "I too will use this book to communicate with you, though you will often see Polari's face in place of my own. I must depart now. Good luck, all of you." And with that, Rosalina floated off somewhere in the Observatory.

Mario nodded. "Lineland it is." He handed the book to Peach, who put it in her pouch.

"So," Luigi started, "who wants to learn how to use a Launch Star first?"

**A/N: I like Rosalina. She's pretty fun to play in Smash Bros. too.**

**And I know this seems awfully similar to my plot in Zarla's Story… but it's not going to be that convoluted this time, I promise. It will stay within the Nintendo franchise and mostly in Mario's part of that.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Nintendo.**

**(Current Length: about 10.75 pages and 3,610 words in MS Word.)**


	4. Chapter 4

Blumiere was the one who went first.

Not only did he learn how to use a Launch Star, he also learned that when they said "launch" they weren't kidding. Somehow he landed on his feet but didn't break his legs.

He was shortly joined by Timpani and then Bowser. Both declared "oomph!" as they landed on the grassy plain.

Peach floated down her parasol next. Daisy followed soon afterwards, shouting "YEE-HAW!" as she glided through the air with a… hang glider?

Mario and Luigi came last, their landing not fazing them in the least. It's like they started walking before they even reached the ground.

"On we go?" Daisy asked.

Luigi nodded. "Shouldn't be too far… it is the first level, after all."

And so on the group marched, everyone jumping on an enemy they came across. Or hitting them with a hammer, parasol, cane, fire breath, tennis racket, or rocks if it was a spiked enemy. The group had no issues with passing the first level.

"Wow, that went faster than last time," Timpani commented.

"The strength of numbers. It will become harder when we need special abilities to get places," Mario said.

If anyone was going to say anything, they were cut off by a rumble.

Fracktail emerged from underneath the ground where he rested until his duties summoned him.

"Heroes! Welcome!" he roared. "What's this? More of you?"

"Yes, Fracktail. We need to find… something," Timpani frowned, realizing that they had gotten so caught up in saving the worlds, they hadn't figured out what they needed to find.

"A Power Star," Daisy spoke, startling everyone.

"Ah yes… I do believe I have one. Give me a moment to check…"

As Fracktail scanned his systems, a disturbance through space sent prickles down everyone's neck.

"Ho ho ho ho ho…. So you all gather here like ants on a child's school project…" An awfully familiar voice sounded.

Dimentio had arrived. "Ah, but if I let this dragon just give you the Star, it's not any fun, is it? Won't you dance a little for me… especially you, Luigi. Wasn't it fun to go against your brother?"

Dimentio suddenly reappeared and grabbed Luigi's arm.

"Ciao!" he said. But before he could teleport away, a sand wedge stuck him, knocking him away.

"Don't you dare lay another finger on him!" Daisy shouted angrily at the demented jester, golf club brandished. The normally happy princess was downright terrifying, even if the anger was directed at someone else. Luigi shivered, trying to regain himself.

"Ooh, a feisty one. I will enjoy this, then… Ciao!"

This time, Dimentio really did teleport away, but without Luigi in hand.

"Thanks Daisy," Luigi panted, bending over.

"Don't thank me yet…" A gloved hand rested on his back. "We've got another fish to fry."

Fracktail had been sparking and buzzing during the exchange, but everyone had been afraid of losing Luigi so quickly into the adventure, they had failed to notice.

"ATTACK!" the dragon roared before flying into the sky.

"Not again!" Mario groaned before leaping over the attack, stomping on one part of Fracktail before being thrown off. Everyone else followed suit, but it did little to the robotic dragon.

"Blumiere," Timpani caught her husband's attention, "think you can hold him?"

The Count thought about it for a short time. "I believe so but- bleck!" Count Blumiere said as he was tackled to the side by his wife. The tail swung out to one side, driving the dragon to one direction but also managing to knock over Peach, Luigi, and Mario.

Mario, of course, managed to tumble to his feet, as did his brother. Luigi had apparently gotten over his fear of Dimentio now that he had been attacked. Peach picked herself backup delicately.

"He's improved since last time," Mario said, "That was certainly new."

"What is it with your revamped villains?! I swear, this series hardly ever gets new ones!" Timpani complained, picking herself up.

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" Daisy replied.

Fracktail moved to chomp Blumiere and Timpani. The Count took notice and his frustration showed on his face.

"Fine!" he said. He pointed his cane at the robot dragon and shouted in a strange language.

The dragon paused, Mario noted, but he waited for it to move so he could attack it without injury.

But it didn't.

Everyone but Timpani looked at Blumiere. The former climbed up on the dragon and removed a piece and began to fiddle with the different parts.

"What's the matter? Did it backfire on me as well?" Blumiere looked at himself.

"All fixed!" his wife shouted from the top of the dragons head, leaping down.

The dragon whirred back to life. Everyone but Timpani and Blumiere got ready to fight again.

"Oh, Heroes! Welcome!" the robot projected. "I must apologize for that… I was quite advanced for the time of the ancients, so they never thought to protect me from magic changing my programming!" He looked at Blumiere and Timpani.

"I must thank your teamwork for repairing me. That was a Stop Spell, no? Very advanced for not using a Stopwatch."

Blumiere tipped his hat down in embarrassment. "Timpani had a plan. I just did what I thought would help."

"Hm… I believe I have items for you." A panel on the dragon's side extended, revealing a few items.

The group approached. "A Power Star!" Daisy exclaimed, picking it up and handing it to Luigi, who put it in his overalls' pocket.

"Why haven't you used magic before?" Bowser inquired as Peach looked at a book and the brothers took some Fire Flowers and passed them out.

Blumiere shrugged. "The only occasion that required it was the kid's game. And it hardly seemed fair to use magic against them to win."

Bowser nodded his head.

"I believe this is for you, then. I can't read a single word in this book," Peach remarked, handing it to the Count.

His eyes widened. "This book… Fracktail, when did you receive this?"

"A few months ago, sir. A strange guy in green said that someone would need this."

Luigi pointed at himself.

"No, he did not look like you… it is strange. I cannot seem to recall much of his image. It was if he was not of this realm."

"Thank you, Fracktail," Peach said, hoping to move the group from their stunned positions.

"Anytime heroes. If you require more aid, feel free to stop by again." And Fracktail dove back into the Earth.

"Well. This was enlightening," Peach said.

"Dimentio is back and is creepy for me," Luigi deadpanned. "Just what I wanted."

"Aw, don't worry sugar, I'll help you against that demented jester!" Daisy proclaimed.

"Thank you, Daisy. That leads me to a question."

"Shoot."

"How'd you know it was a Star we were looking for?"

"The first line in Merlon's poem thing. _As the Sandman turns the fated wheel._ Momma used to read me a poem called _The Sandman _before I went to bed. It went a little something like this:

_The Sandman's coming in his train of cars,_

_With moonbeam windows and with wheels of stars._

_So hush now little one you have no fear_

_The Man in the Moon, he is the engineer._

_The railroad track is a moonbeam bright,_

_That leads up straight to the starry night._

_So put on your 'jamas and say your prayers_

_And know that the Sandman always cares." _Daisy recited. "The second line is the connection."

"And the magician did deal the final blow," Mario recalled Blumiere's powerful display. What else could the Count do with his powers?

"And a riddle certainly popped up… who is that guy in green if it's not Luigi?" Bowser was the next to speak.

"But what was that who-ha about past wounds?" Daisy asked.

"I believe," Bluimere said sadly, "that that line would be speaking about myself."

"Oh?"

"I tried to fell these worlds a time ago… though whether it was short or long, I am unable to say… seeing this land that I tried to destroy… it hurt. But knowing I'm doing something to prevent it from the beginning this time… that old cut has finally closed. I feel at peace." Blumiere closed his eyes.

"I think that's the most you've spoken… ever," Bowser commented, though not unkindly.

"Why waste words? Actions are easier and far less finicky to interpret."

"We should probably see where that door leads us." Luigi gestured. "We need to move on and speak to Merlon and Rosalina again and see if they have any more information. Plus we need to find out about Dimentio. Is he working alone, or is he joining with others? Furthermore, is he the ringer leader or a follower in the latter scenario?"

"More riddles." Bowser rolled his eyes.

"Let's go, no sense in wasting time!" Daisy reached the door first and tugged it open, only to reveal another glimpse of purple before the group was pulled away again.

_Great,_ Blumiere thought as he held onto his top hat and his wife, _more void travelling._

**A/N: Who is the guy in green if it's not Luigi indeed? And what did Fracktail mean by he's not of this realm? And furthermore, how did Fracktail know the person was a he if the robot couldn't see him that well?**

**I know the answers. Can you figure them out? Perhaps the last A/N will hold a clue…**

**I did not make up **_**The Sandman **_**rhyme. That belongs to history. I did, however, make up the prophecy.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Nintendo.**

**(Current Length: about 15.25 pages and 5,216 words in MS Word.)**


	5. Chapter 5

"Oof!"Mario had landed flat on his back. On the bright side, travelling through voids seemed to be somewhat gentle, as they didn't break any bones, no matter how disorienting the portals were.

"Urgh… where are we now?" Luigi groaned.

"A rather convenient location."

"Merlon!" Peach exclaimed.

"So you're that wizard guy! I'm Daisy… normally I'd say it's nice to meet you, but…" The princess shrugged.

"I understand. I could say the same for you, Princess Daisy. Peach and Luigi have spoken about you at length and I was eager to meet you, if possible. I understand that diplomatic reasons held you back. But enough of pleasantries. The Light Prognosticus is reacting. It's the end of worlds all over again," the wizard sighed.

"Then it's a good thing we're here! Heck, I only know of a few other contenders for the 'avoided an apocalypse' count lead!" Daisy said, throwing her arms over the two closest people to her, who were Luigi and Timpani.

Blumiere bowed his head and sighed. Timpani linked her arm through his, her way of saying "it's not your fault."

He smiled, but only slightly.

"All worlds must end eventually… but it's too soon, too soon," the wizard murmured, "that's why the book is reacting. If it was the true end, it would stay silent."

"What does it say now?"

"_The guy in green is a mystery_

_His identity lies in your history._

_More questions than answers have been revealed._

_But go to a land where evil was repealed._

_Therein lies an ancient door_

_Is sealed for ages more_

_Old friends shall show the way_

_And help you all to save the day._

_The magician's book is what you'll need_

_In order to match a hedgehog's speed!_ The last line hardly makes sense to me… don't hedgehogs run at about 20 kilometers per hour?"

"Most, yes," Mario responded, "but there's one who can really run…"

"Sonic," Luigi finished.

"Didn't he participate in battling the Subspace Army? He came a bit late…" Peach asked.

"Wait. Subspace. Bro, wasn't that material purple?" Luigi asked.

"… Let's hope you're wrong for once, Luigi."

Luigi muttered something darkly before speaking up. "Sonic arrived so late because his world wasn't connected to ours yet. Subspace engulfed his world, too, and that's when he was able to join the fight and destroy Taboo's wings."

Timpani looked around. Her husband looked as confused as she felt.

"I feel as if we are missing a vital piece of the conversation," Blumiere stated.

Peach shook her head. "It would take too long to explain right now. We'll explain later if need be, but just know that Sonic claimed that he took up the name because he can run faster than the speed of sound."

"He's never actually show us, but I have no problems believing it. He ran around the stages and never seemed tired of running," Mario said, "Is there a speed spell in that book of yours, Blumiere?"

Blumiere shrugged. "Probably. Only a few spells are printed, but I already learned these. I suppose the spell will come when it is needed. It's much like the Prognostici; it has many blank pages."

Luigi appeared to be deep in thought. None disturbed him. Luigi had a knack for putting pieces together, and if was trying to figure out the prophecy, he'd need all the concentration he can get.

"The guy in green is someone we know. So at least we won't have to deal with trying to tell strangers what we're doing. And also, I think we need to return to Rougeport. That's where the Thousand Year Door is, right Bro?"

Mario nodded. "The ancient door line?"

"Yes. You should probably also tell Goombella; _old friends shall show the way_."

"Well, it appears you all have gotten it sorted out. Feel free to stop by the stores and pick up some items or to go get food from Saffron. Not much has changed here since you left, but I don't think the door in Flopside leads to your old castle, Blumiere, as it was destroyed in the end," Merlon informed.

"Good. May it rot."

The residents of the Mushroom Kingdom were surprised at the venom in his voice. Then again, they supposed, they probably shouldn't be.

"I don't believe I've heard of Rougeport, but the door to the castle should take you to where you want to go," Merlon continued, unperturbed.

"That's… an awfully large coincidence," Bowser noted, "I mean, first that Launch Star, now the door?"

Merlon shrugged. "The universe is being destroyed before its time. Perhaps it knew about that and is doing everything it can to save itself."

"Survival instinct," Timpani spoke up, surprising everyone, "Every living thing in this universe has it; so instinct probably told someone the Launch Star needed to be built or that your castle needed to be torn down."

"Whatever it is, I'm just glad that the odds are in our favor," Daisy replied.

Mario nodded. "Enough dawdling. Should we see if the shops have any items we could use?"

Peach nodded. "We don't have any healing items yet. Unless you want to try the vegetable tactic?"

"No offense, sugar, but seein as how you can pull out Bob-Ombs I'd rather not risk our luck." Daisy's face contorted at the mention of eating Bob-Ombs.

"True enough. We'll be back." The two princesses departed.

"Merlon?" Timpani requested the wizard's attention.

"Oh?"

"Do you still have that stuff?"

"What- oh, of course! I'm surprised you hadn't asked for it sooner."

"There was no need for it. I knew what it was… I just didn't know why I had that urge that I would need it."

"There are still pieces missing from it, you know."

"Good thing I got them in the Flower Kingdom then."

Merlon laughed. "Ah, the universe prepared well indeed if you are that determined. It's in the same place we left it all that time ago."

"Thank you." And with that, the dark-skinned female left towards Merlon's house.

"What?" Mario, Luigi, and Bowser all asked simultaneously. All of them looked at Blumiere, who would probably be far less cryptic in his response. But the Count just held up his hands.

"I'll let her surprise you."

And that she did. The three males thought she resembled Samus like that, seeing as how she now had a mecha arm attached to her right hand and a backpack that looked slightly heavy on her back.

"It shouldn't be," Timpani responded to a question that the male Mushroom Kingdom residents had missed due to their stupor. Blumiere linked his right arm through her left and kissed her head before muttering something in her ear. She smiled, but did not reply.

Both the princesses came back. Daisy caught sight of the gleaming mech and whistled.

"Dang, honey, you got that? All I have is sports equipment…"

"Which has its purposes. Once I run out of ammo, this thing is dead weight," Timpani informed, "There is no such thing as a perfect weapon. But yours have infinite uses, so there's a pro to that."

"True that! Are we ready to go?" Daisy looked around. Everyone nodded.

"Good luck, heroes. I will report to you all as soon as Rosalina gives me more information." Merlon walked into his house, presumably to study the magic book once more.

The heroes went down the pipe to Flopside, going up the elevator in the mirror world to the door that once lead to Castle Bleck.

"_Dear Count… does the name Blumiere mean anything to you?"_ the familiar demented voice echoed around Blumiere's head as they approached the door. The Count shook the voice away.

"To Rougeport!" Mario opened the door and everyone walked into the blinding light.

**A/N: It appears that our heroes forgot something very important… like telling Merlon what the heck happened? And talking to Goombella? …That might be because of me. But it will get sorted, don't worry.**

**Also, I do hope I'm being cryptic enough with the guy in green. I mean, we already know it's not Luigi… but if it's not him, there are many more who could be… green is a popular color, after all.**

**Perhaps this chapter hides a well-hidden clue? Or perhaps it is obvious, if it is there at all…**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**(Current Length: about 19.75 pages and 6,613 words in MS Word.)**


	6. Chapter 6

For some reason, Mario's phone-like device still worked while walking in the White Zone between worlds.

"Yes, we're coming… unfortunately it's not pleasant… yes, I know, Goombella… You know how busy we are… GOOMBELLA!" He shouted suddenly, startling the rest of his party members.

"Sorry. Goombella, something is happening in Rougeport of great importance… that sounds awfully familiar… no, I don't recall… than you Goombella. See you soon." Mario hung up the phone. "She can be a bit of a chatterbox… sorry about that."

"Eh, we're here," Bowser shrugged, opening the door at the other end of the tunnel. As soon as the party left, the door disappeared. Not that they noticed. The whole town looked like Mardi Gras! Balloons, lights, colors, dressy clothes, and even masks were everywhere. The whole group admired the scene.

"I know you said soon, Mario, but I didn't know you meant this soon!" A pink Goomba spoke up in front of them.

"Hello, Goombella!" Peach, Luigi, and Mario greeted.

"Hello to you as well! Welcome to the 'happening of great importance', as mustachio put it, the Carnival of Time! We hold it once a year to count the number of years left on the door's seal. It was supposed to happen after your trip here, Mario, but as you found out, the years and days were a little off."

"No kidding. Don't get me wrong, I like meeting new people. But I just wish it didn't come at the cost of a kidnapping, apocalypse, domination plot…" Mario trailed off.

Goombella made an odd face. "I can get with that. Anyway, newcomers, this is the Carnival of Time! I know you guys aren't here for pleasantries, but the Professor is still researching what the heck it was you needed to outrun. Feel free to walk around and enjoy the festivities! I'll be in the information booth if you need me." And with that, she walked off.

Mario shrugged. "Might as well. The Professor does take a bit more time, but his information is accurate and reliable. That should cover for the time lost."

Bowser was the first of the group to bow out. "I'll take Goombella on her offer- the information booth doesn't seem that exciting. I'm not into the whole cramming people thing."

Mario extended a hand to Peach. "Might I escort you, my lady?" Whether or not he was joking was hard for anyone other than Luigi or Peach.

Peach laughed. "Of course, sir." The two walked off.

"Luigi! There's a bell tower over there! Let's go knock it sky high!" Daisy exclaimed, dragging a laughing Luigi along by the hand.

That left Blumiere and Timpani. "Shall we?" The Count asked his Lady.

"Indeed," she responded, linking her arm through his. They started walking, not really noticing anything that had caught their attentions.

"I feel sort of bad… like I should've dressed up for this or something," Timpani said conversationally.

Spying a nearby stand, Blumiere directed his wife towards it. "You still can. Don't worry about coins, I have that handled."

She stared at him suspiciously. "You aren't going to scam them, are you?"

Blumiere looked offended. "Hardly! My time as the Count granted me some funding… I ignored it for the most part, seeing as how I didn't want anything. I usually just bought food for the minions or clothes for Mimi. Using it to buy clothes for you will put it towards a good cause…" he trailed off, unsure of how to phrase his thoughts. His wife kissed him on the cheek.

"I understand. You know what; I think I'll take you up on your offer." She and her husband walked towards the stand.

"Interested in one of my wares?" the salesperson asked kindly. "My wife makes all of these."

"All on her own?" Timpani asked, delicately holding one of the dresses.

"For the most part. The kids and I help out where we can, and one of my son's friends helped with some of the hats and masks." He gestured over at the racks that displayed the items. "She's still working on a few designs that will be here tomorrow, if you want to come back then?"

Timpani shook her head. "I'd love to see more of your wife's dresses and such, but we can only stay for a few hours."

"Ah, live far away? I can respect that. You're looking at sizes much too large for you, by the way. There are dresses that can fit you over on these racks." The salesman directed the human to the racks on the other side.

"Oh wow… these are all very beautiful," Timpani murmured to her husband, "I'm not sure which one to get."

"What about this one?" Blumiere showed a green dress that was similar in color to Timpani's tunic.

"I think I want something other than green… add in a few colors to the rainbow, right?"

Blumiere nodded and started looking for another color.

"If I may make a suggestion?" the salesman interrupted.

Blumiere gestured to the rack. "By all means."

The salesperson hardly blinked an eye as he reached into the crowded rack and blindly pulled out a dress.

It was short, probably only reaching the tops of Timpani's knees. The red base had purple lace swirling over it with a dark red belt right underneath the bust. The short sleeves themselves had a small amount of lace on the ends, but nothing overtop of them.

"Oh wow… your wife is amazing," Timpani gasped.

"My wife made it, but it was the kids who designed it. They made the pattern and dressed it up with the color scheme and lace patterns. There's a fitting room in the center if you'd like to try it on."

Timpani nodded, taking the offered dress and walking into the changing room.

"How much?" Blumiere asked.

The salesperson seemed confused. "You don't know if it's going to fit."

Blumiere chuckled. "My wife and I may not have held those titles for many years, but I still know her habits. She won't try it on unless she's confident she wants it. It's just her little check to make sure it's as comfortable as it looks."

"Ah. My wife is similar in that regard. Anyway, the dress is 150 coins."

"Wow… that's…"

"Overpriced?"

"Underpriced, actually. I'll pay you 225, no less."

The shopkeeper blinked. "That's the first time anyone's haggled _upwards_."

The Count shrugged. "It's a fine dress. Consider it a tip for the excellent customer service. Do you own a clothing shop?"

"No, just this stand. We open on festivals, for the most part; otherwise my wife would stitch until her fingers bled."

"That wouldn't be good." Blumiere gazed around the mask stand and pulled down two masks. One was ivory with purple and black beads decorating it, while the other was purple with red beads.

"And these?"

"Fifty coins total."

"I'll pay you a hundred… so that's 325 coins for the dress and the masks." Blumiere pulled out a pouch from his cloak and counted to be sure there was enough.

Timpani walked out at this time wearing the dress. She still wore her pants underneath, but since they were close to her skin, it didn't affect the lay of the dress.

Blumiere looked up when he was done counting and was struck by his wife's beauty once again.

"Wow… my dear, you look stunning…" he managed to say.

Timpani curtsied. "Thank you. And thank you, also," she addressed the shopkeeper.

"It's my job, Madam. I hope you enjoy the dress and mask."

"Mask?"

Blumiere handed the red one to her and winked. Timpani put it on, and Blumiere did the same.

"Lovely! Thank you for purchasing merchandise from Blue Birb Design, and I hope that one day, you'll come back to view more of our wares! Would you like a bag for your clothes?"

"No thank you, I have one," Timpani pointed to the back pack.

The salesperson bowed his head. "Come again!"

The couple walked off. "They would have a really good business if they had more hands going for them than just his wife's. I wonder if they'd be willing to teach a few Toads, they seem to want something to do a lot of the time."

"Hm… perhaps. But those are plans for another day," Blumiere replied as they walked through more colorful stands. The people manning them shouted their wares.

"Candy! Come buy your homemade candy!"

"Can you make six baskets in a row? Try your skill here!"

"Take a seat and watch Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door for only the small fee of five coins each!"

"Come and see the acrobatics here at Fangora Heights Circus! Best acrobats around!"

"Oh Blumiere! There's a dance area!" His wife grabbed his hand and caused him to stumble as she dragged him towards the area.

Blumiere laughed as she stopped. "Always the dancer, aren't you?"

The musicians began a new song, upbeat and happy. Blumiere and Timpani spun around with the other couples, following the steps made up long ago. They laughed and cheered with everyone else when the song ended. This went on for a bit until Blumiere stopped them, slightly out of breath but smiling.

"I, for one, haven't danced in ages… we also need to find Goombella again. Surely the professor has discovered something, and if not, we need to meet up with Mario so we don't miss the meeting."

"Just one thing first," his wiferesponded.

"Wha- oomph!" Blumiere began to ask his wife before she kissed him.

He felt his face flare up. Normally, the reserved their relationship for their own home, maybe doing small acts of affection around their friends. It was a habit since before they were married, but Timpani appeared to have gotten over it.

"There. Now we can leave." Timpani linked her arm through her husband's and moved on. Blumiere just nodded, very aware of how deep purple his cheeks were.

They meandered back to the information booth, finding everyone else already there.

"Hey new guys! I was just about to tell you all what the Professor found out. Apparently, in some other dimension, there's another Carnival of Time, and once, it was a deadline until the world was destroyed… the person who averted their apocalypse wore a bunny like hood that let them run crazy fast! Heck, he even found some pictures underneath Rougeport! Normally he'd meet us there, but… well, he's an aging Goomba." Goombella smiled sadly.

Mario nodded in understanding. "Let's not disappoint him, then. Shall we?"

The group nodded and followed Mario and Goombella. Blumiere and Timpani brought up the rear.

"Why did you react so strongly to the book Fracktail had, Blumiere?" Timpani asked her husband quietly. The question had been bugging her for a while now.

The Count sighed. "… The fact that he had it is a miracle… I thought that book lost ages ago. It was in my parent's library, Timpani."

Timpani blinked rapidly. "I suppose the question is how the guy in green got it."

"My realm was most likely restored with the rest of the realms…" Blumiere lamented. "While I am overjoyed that my deed is undone, I cannot help to feel dread."

"Your father?"

"Yes, my dear… I fear he will try to take you from me once again."

Timpani's smile surprised him at first, but he noticed that this smile was predatory.

"Let him try… if he hasn't gotten the gist by now, well, he's going to have a harder time, especially with our friends around. Something tells me that after this adventure, sleepovers are going to be pretty popular events."

"Have I ever mentioned how scary you can be when you're angry?"

"Yes."

Blumiere nodded. At this point, the group had managed to navigate the crowds and was nearly at the pipe that led below Rougeport when the former villain was struck with a sudden urge.

"Timpani," he requested seriously.

"Yes?"

"This book of mine can be used by whoever reads it. My spells will only be more potent if I use this book, but if for some reason I am unable, you can use it. I already know many of the spells within this book, so don't be afraid to take it."

"If it comes to that, I won't be."

Goombella and Mario went down the pipe first, followed by the two princesses and Luigi.

"You two go first," Bowser gestured.

"Thank you, Bowser," Timpani said before going down the pipe.

Blumiere tipped his hat. "Thank you indeed, Lord Bowser." Then he too went down the green pluming, landing on his feet with an "Oof".

"Follow me… but beware of rats…" Goombella said before walking into the distance.

"It's best not to stray too far… it's dark down here and she wasn't kidding about rats," Mario explained.

It didn't take long for the group to arrive. Bowser would spit an ember at every unlit torch they passed, making the area brighter.

"Here we are," Goombella announced. It wasn't very grand; just a pedestal with a few photos that looked old and worn… so old and so worn, hardly a thing could be seen on it. The only thing that could be made out were a set of familiar blue eyes staring straight ahead. The boys crowded around first, taking in each photo for a second before going to think about what they had seen. The girls crowded around next, Luigi's chattering teeth the only sound.

"There's some writin' here," Daisy spoke lowly, "'turn around…'"

A solid _WHUMP _marked the females turning around, only to see a giant rat where the guys were.

All four of them had been knocked to the side and were now dazed. None of them could participate in this battle.

"A rat!" Peach shouted, pulling a vegetable out of the ground. Timpani pointed her mech hand at the rat and fired a volley of electric blue shots.

But the rat wasn't there.

"Ee he he he he! Too slow to get me!" A laugh rang out behind them. Peach threw her vegetable as she was turning, but the rat was too quick to hit. He managed a hit on Peach, who tumbled a bit before getting back up.

"Oh no you don't! Flower Power!"

A glowing soccer ball hit the rat in the face, but it only seemed to anger the ghost enemy. He turned on Daisy, eyes narrowed.

"Uh-oh." Daisy turned and ran, just in time to dodge one hit, but another one knocked her down.

Timpani tried shooting it with homing projectiles, but they missed as well, crashing into each other.

Merlon's words suddenly echoed in her head.

"_The magician's book is what you'll need/ in order to match a hedgehog's speed!"_

Her husband's voice replaced her friend's.

"_This book of mine can be used by whoever reads it."_

An older memory came into play, her husband's voice still very much the same.

"_How do I use magic? It's not a complicated process, like how most your species seems to think. You don't control the energy, it aids you. You ask for its help, usually by offering memories. Nowadays, whenever I think of you, it's difficult to keep the magic from occurring. Happy memories work best for magic that aids you, for their power is stronger due to the positive emotion. You could use magic, but I suggest against it without a supervisor or training. Perhaps one of these days I can help you."_

This all took place in Timpani's mind within a second. She instantly ran towards Blumiere and dug through his cape, pulling the book out of his magical pocket and flipping to the last page with print.

She muttered the words carefully, remembering happy times with Merlon, Blumiere, Mario, Peach, and everyone else in the room with her and all who weren't. As soon as she finished muttering the last few words, the world seemed to slow down. The rat was moving at a normal speed, maybe slightly slower than usual.

Peach got a clear shot with a vegetable. Goombella knocked it with a Headbump. Timpani ran forward, dropping the book next to her husband, and shot it a few times with electric ammo, stunning it, giving Daisy an opening.

"Four!" the aforementioned princess shouted, launching a golf ball that grew to be nearly the size of the rat towards the creature's face.

"Ack!" it shouted as it exploded into nothingness.

"We did it!" Peach cheered.

"What were you doing with that weird book over there? We could've used your help!" Goombella demanded Timpani.

"If you'd calm down and use that big thinker o' yours, you'd realize my sweet girl here did!"

"A prophecy," Peach explained to the confused pink Goomba, "_The magician's book is what you'll need/ in order to match a hedgehog's speed!_ We have a hedgehog friend who can run super fast. Can you use magic too, Timpani?"

"Bleck… sort… of…" A winded Blumiere was the first to stand up, startling the females. All the other males were recovering as well.

"Anyone can… use magic so… long as they… have an idea… of how to use it… or have some form of… training… Timpani… is very lucky… the spell didn't… backfire on her as well…" the Count panted. His wife moved to help him stand up straight. The other females moved to help the other guys.

"Here," Peach said, handing each of them a piece of candy from her pouch, "it will help restore your strength."

"Thank you…Princess," Mario and Luigi said.

"Shh now, sugars, don't talk. That was a nasty vermin!" Daisy exclaimed.

"Ugh… you're telling me. What kinda low life sneaks up on their enemies?" Bowser demanded.

"T-that… k-kind…" Luigi muttered before being shushed by Daisy.

Timpani walked over and picked up the book she dropped before handing it to her husband.

"You'll probably get a lot more use out of it than I," she whispered to him as he put it back in his pocket.

Blumiere shrugged. "You seemed to do pretty… well." He exhaled heavily. "That's going to leave a bruise."

"Let's get these tough guys to the inn. They can rest up there," Goombella said, "I've got a few Inn Coupons left from mine and Mario's adventure that are still valid, but probably not enough for four couples…"

"I'll cover the others," Peach said, still holding up Mario, "just lead us there, please."

Goombella nodded… which was pretty much ducking. "On it. The pipe may be a bit tricky." Bowser, thankfully, was able to stand and walk on his own, just in a great amount of pain.

Somehow, getting to the overworld wasn't as tricky as Goombella had thought. Blumiere managed to help get the others on the pipe, and all of them had recovered enough to at least stand on their own. Getting them into their rooms wasn't difficult, either, since the whole inn was on the first floor. They each paired up, one guy and one girl so that way the girls could take of the guys while they recovered. (It's a pretty lucky thing Bowser only had a sore shell and maybe some chipped spikes, else the girls would be in a lot more trouble.)

Blumiere removed his top hat, cane, mask, cloak, and the top part of his suit, revealing dark purple discoloration in the shape of the Rat's tail on his abdomen. His back didn't look any better; he knew by the pain in it. While he had experienced worse, it still hurt. Timpani guided him to the bed in the room, helping him ease himself onto it before rushing off to the bathroom to get a few wet rags. She got a few things from the backpack on the way back, as Peach had handed them a couple of items each before helping Mario into their room.

He hissed as his wife placed the cold rags on his bruise.

"You can cut the spell, you know. I already know what you look like, and so do our friends."

"It's not really for any of you… though, in a way, I suppose it is. I keep the spell up, just in case. It doesn't cost much compared to some other spells I used. Besides, haven't you noticed how people stare at the group when they see me? I have… I don't people discriminating against us because of me…"

"Blumiere, all of our friends hold some sort of political power. I doubt anyone would discriminate against their friends," Timpani comforted as she put some leaves in her mouth. There wasn't a motar or anything in the room she could use to crush them other than her teeth, so she was stuck doing it the old fashioned way.

"It's not just that, my dear… I don't want to be seen as Count Bleck. I am no longer him and have no desire to be known as him ever again. This is part of that, and small as a change it may be, you all didn't recognize Luigi as Mr. L."

"To be fair, we had some really important shindigs happening," Timpani defended after she spat out the leaves into a bowl. She mixed in some drinking water from the pack and gave it to her husband, who took the medicine dutifully.

"It helps me more than others," the Count admitted, turning his head from his wife.

He felt her over him. He turned to her, his eyes downcast in embarrassment and shame.

Her fingers lifted his chin upwards, forcing him to face her.

"It's okay," she whispered to him quietly, "I understand."

Blumiere shook his head, his nose brushing hers. "How can you understand? I betrayed my family, my people, the universe! I nearly dest-"

And for the second time that night, his wife cut him off by leaning down and kissing him. He returned it after a second of regaining his wits.

"I know," she said as she leaned away, "because I did something rather similar when I married you. I betrayed my father's wishes, your family's wishes, my own race…. And you want to know what? If it meant rescuing you from being Count Bleck, I'd do what you did and worse. It's called love, Blumiere. It's shared joy, sacrifice, pain, happiness, and just… love."

Blumiere smiled. "You always know just what to say, my dear."

"No; I just know what to say to you, when I need to say anything at all."

It was Blumiere who kissed her this time. Unlike him, she reacted immediately, reaching up with one hand to run through his hair.

He sighed and did the same to her, his other reaching to try to push her closer to him automatically.

That wasn't a smart idea.

Both yelped for different reasons. Blumiere because that bruise was seriously painful; Timpani because those rags were still really cold.

"Sorry," the Count apologized, "I also got your dress wet."

"The dress will dry… besides, it's not 'dry-clean-only' material or whatever, we can just stick it in the wash when we get back if need be." Timpani laughed.

Blumiere's eyes widened before closing as he lifted a hand to his forehead. He said something Timpani couldn't understand but heavily suspected was cursing.

"What?"

"Did that rat drop a Power Star?"

Silence took over for a moment.

"Well. Crap."

**A/N: The main purpose of this story was to give Blumiere and Timpani a bit more love. So, an entire chapter dedicated mostly to fluff and epic girl action. Because let's face it, Daisy and Peach need more kick-butt moments, and having Timpani be a character I can just go full-hog with is awesome.**

**And why is Daisy using sports equipment? Go-karts are a bit difficult to put into hammerspace… but multiple tennis rackets, golf clubs, and more are pretty easy to get in and out. (In chuggaaconroy's words, Nintendo logic.) Also, note from Fracktail's fight: a sand wedge is the heaviest golf club according to a quick Google search. So yeah, Dimensio's got a hell of a bruise!**

**Peach is able to use some of her Brawl moves, however, they've been modified. She will never pull a Mr. Saturn out of the ground because there's no one from Mother/Earthbound here to allow her to do so, even if the worlds are collapsing (as I said, mostly in Mario's universe). Bob-ombs and vegetables still can be, but Bob-ombs are rare.**

**Furthermore, now that it's been revealed that basically anyone can use magic, will the others be trying Blumiere's book? Probably not unless a circumstance arises; as Blumiere said, it's dangerous without training.**

**Another thing: I really hope the guy in green is either obvious or getting on your nerves because you don't know who it is. I really freaking hope. Don't worry, you'll be meeting him soon…**

**Also, shout-out to my friend for allowing me to base that stall scene of his family's own. They do something really similar during the winter here where I live, though I'm not sure if they've met anyone like Blumiere! They're also the one who named the place and helped me out with the next chapter.**

**This story is dedicated to the YouTuber chuggaaconroy. It was his Let's Play/ Walkthrough of Super Paper Mario that introduced me to this ship and thus all the ideas coming from it. It was also his videos of The Thousand Year Door that let me write this chapter. He does mostly live commentary, 100% playthroughs of games. He's done Kid Icarus Uprising, Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, Pikmin 2, Sonic Colors, Animal Crossing, and is currently doing Xenoblade Chronicles. There are many other games he's done as well, mostly Nintendo, so if you're stuck in one or just have some time to kill, I highly recommend sitting down and watching his channel. He's also part of the channel TheRunawayGuys with Proton John (who did Superman 64) and NintendoCaprisSun (NCS), who has done Plants vs. Zombies. (Just watch them, okay? They're awesome.) A guy named Josh Jepson is also part of the Runaway Guys, but I have no idea what he does.**

**Disclaimer: After this really freaking long A/N, I still own jack squat.**

**(Current length: about 29 pages and 10,981 words in MS Word.)**


	7. Chapter 7

_Heads up: the medicine that Timpani gave Blumiere is basically anesthesia. _

"Aw, _shoot!"_ Daisy exclaimed when all the girls meet up after the guys had fallen asleep. "How could we forget that, of all things?!"

"Very easily," Peach said, rinsing a rag in the sink next to Daisy. "We had bigger worries."

"We could go down there and get it, you know…" Goombella said.

Timpani shook her head. "After that spook, I'd rather not leave the guys alone, and I'm not saying that just because I'm married to one of them."

"Aw shucks girl, you're married?! Where's the rock?" Goombella asked bluntly.

Timpani gestured at the butterfly pin in her hair. "It was a bit of a hazard, us getting married… and by that I mean we had armies after us. Besides, neither of us cared for rings, as they get in the way more often than not."

"Now that's a story I'd pay to hear!"

Timpani shook her head. "It's not just mine, so until Blumiere is awake…"

"Ugh…" Goombella sat back down, "but then it's get the Star and go!"

Peach made a strange sound while Daisy outright snorted.

"Please. We wanna hear this too! We'll just move the party location to here," the flower princess laughed.

"It's not as if it would be difficult… Mario likes going around and making sure everyone's okay after an 'end of the world' plot. He hasn't these last few times because he's had injuries and as soon as they healed, it was another adventure," Peach shot down any argument Goombella might've had.

"Strange how the universe works," Timpani muttered, finally cleaning the dried leaves out of the bowl.

"Why didn't you just use a Mushroom on him or something, sugar? It'd be a heck of a lot easier than chewin' those leaves!" Daisy asked.

"He's allergic," Timpani shrugged.

Peach blinked rapidly in surprise. "I hope he's not allergic to my kingdom!" she laughed.

Everyone else joined in.

"I hear mirth!" Blumiere called from the bedroom adjacent. He had woken up, apparently, but his speech sounded a little weird.

"Good, that means your ears are working fine!" Timpani replied, still laughing.

They could hear Blumiere chuckle too, which was quite odd. Normally he laughed too quietly to hear. For them to be able to hear him through the walls pretty much meant the Count was in hysterics.

Timpani sighed. "Not to say those leaves don't make him a little loopy."

Peach laughed. "It's certainly entertaining."

"So are we just gonna sit here and chat about the guys or are we going to get to the actual conversation?"

"I heard that!"

"Good! Now go to sleep, we don't want a grumpy Count!" Timpani responded.

The Count went back to his usual volume (mumbling) before presumably doing as his wife said.

"You two are too cute."

Silence took over the females as they continued cleaning some dishes and medicinal supplies. It wouldn't be fair to lump the inn staff with them. (Goombella, being too short to reach the sink, keep the others company.)

"Say, sugar. Where'd you get the idea for a mecha arm?" Daisy inquired. "I mean, I just have this stuff lying around from the whacky sport plots, and Peach has always had her parasol. But a mecha arm? That's new."

Timpani laughed. "Actually, my mom made me my first one. She was an absolute genius with robotics, even making some like Francis's." Timpani and Peach shuddered. "But less… design oriented and more for a purpose. 'Design comes later, Timpani. A pretty robot is just a pretty statue if it doesn't work right.' But the world was dangerous, my parents knew, and they also knew that I was a bit of a rebel, so my mom made one for me and told me about it. 'When you need it, here it'll be.' I married Blumiere against my father's wishes, and the arm got left behind. When I woke up as Tippi, I tried to make another one with Merlon's help because I felt that I'd need it someday. Merlon should stick to magic, but it got built most of the way under my instruction. But we needed parts Flipside didn't have… I saw them in the Flower Kingdom a few weeks after we had visited Merlon again. I bought them and, well, here we stand."

"Dang, girl! Did you ever think about going back?"

Timpani shrugged. "My thoughts on the matter hardly make any sense in words. Let's leave it at I would do it again."

Peach nodded. "I'm going back to Mario. The poor man has been taking some hard hits recently, and I want to be sure he's alright." Peach left the bathroom-like area with a small basket of rags. Mario had taken a head wound and most of those rags had been used to clean the blood from his hair.

"Luigi's not as bad as his brother, but he's also scared out of his wits. Pesky Boos… he still doesn't like dark places," she muttered before taking her own leave. She too had rags, but they were more like ice blocks. Luigi was on the end of the tail, so he got slammed slightly harder than the rest of them.

"I'm gonna see if King Grumpy needs a hand with his spike. I'd be in a lot of trouble if he couldn't walk!" Goombella laughed. Bowser was, for the most part, fine. One of his spikes needed a bit of care and he was extremely sore, but nothing sleep wouldn't fix. Or so he claimed rather loudly.

Timpani took her own rags. Her dress was wet, but now from cleaning rather than a mishap. She shrugged. The girls had all gotten pajamas from the owner of the inn after he had seen their clothes that were, and I do quote here, "too gosh-darned fancy to be comfy for sleeping."

Timpani walked into her and Blumiere's room to see him swirling his fingers through the air, purple swirls following them. It wasn't uncommon for him to do such an act; magic was something he loved doing. He often used little spells around the house; like one to remove tough grime from dishes, or to find the leak on a pipe under the sink.

"Feeling better?"

The Count mumbled something. Timpani sighed. "You never did react well to any of our medicines… maybe one day we should make some of your own so that way you don't end up baked."

"Then you guys wouldn't have fun laughing at me," Blumiere said, ceasing his spell and turning to face his wife on the bed.

"Have to make light of the fact somehow. I wonder how Luigi's going to fare, going back down there… poor guy doesn't get a lot of slack, especially when people expect Mario."

"Every dog shall have his day… or, in his case, a year or two."

"What?"

"I have no ide-ahhhh." Blumiere was interrupted by a yawn.

"As I said, go to sleep, Cake."

"… Wow. Is that my nickname now? Count Cake?"

Timpani grabbed the nightgown that had been given to her by the inn keeper before heading off to the adjacent bathroom. "If you don't go to sleep…"

"I think I may like it… just not the reas-aahn it came around." Another yawn escaped him.

Timpani emerged and turned off the light before settling next to her husband. She kissed him on his nose and whispered one last time "Sleep".

Blumiere's slightly out-of-focus eyes closed as his arm snaked around her. The medicine, despite healing him… well, I'll put it bluntly. He's high as a kite, at least for a short time. The realm of light has that effect on his people at first. It makes for an interesting first meeting. Even though Blumiere can live in the light, the medicine of the world has some interesting side effects.

Timpani curled into her husband, but Blumiere had one last thing to say.

"You can change in front of me, you know. You've done it before."

Timpani shrugged tiredly. "Eh. Didn't want to."

Blumiere nodded. "Okay."

And then they finally, _finally_ went to sleep.

**A/N: There were only two purposes to this chapter: girl talk and baked!Blumiere. Who is actually a lot funnier when he's actually present and isn't trying to restrain himself.**

**In all seriousness, the reaction is legitimately why Blumiere was acting like that. It's a slight allergic reaction.**

**The terms "baked" and his nickname "Count Cake" are based off the quote from **_**The Perks of Being a Wallflower **_**movie and is one of very few that stuck with me:**

"**Are you baked?"**

"**Like a cake."**

…**It was late at night, okay? I wasn't really paying attention to the movie at that point.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**(Current Length: 33 pages and about 12,461 words in MS Word.)**


	8. Chapter 8

"Well, here we are," Goombella announced once more. They were underneath Rogueport in the area the pictures were at, but it wasn't as dark as before.

They also didn't seem as peppy as before. Timpani was back in her tunic and pants, and like most of the girls, she had dark circles under her eyes. All the guys had some sort of bandage on them, and even Goombella's steps were slower than before.

The scant amount of light was confusing. Bowser hadn't lit any more torches, and any that he had lit last night should, by all means, be out of fuel.

Goombella opened the door and the source of the light was revealed.

"A Power Star!" Peach strode forwards and collected it, putting it in her pouch.

"And a note," Blumiere noticed, picking up the aforementioned paper. It felt old, but the handwriting looked new, and it certainly wasn't there before.

"You forget these like I forget some of my items," the Count read.

"Nice guy, there. Does it say who wrote it?" Goombella rolled her eyes.

Blumiere's face twitched. "The guy in green. He also wrote 'P.S.- You'll see me soon. Not that soon, but still soon."

"…Weird," Bowser muttered. The Mario Bros. just shrugged.

"You should probably stick around for another few hours or so before you go off on your way. That wall treated you none too kindly."

Mario shook his head. "As much as I wish we could, we should probably go. We don't know where we have to go next, and if we wait a few hours, there might not be any way to get there. We've had worse injuries and with way worse medical care."

"All right then. But I don't wanna hear that your game's over, any of you, you hear me?" Goombella demanded.

"Of course," Timpani responded.

"I'll lead you out."

As Goombella was leading them to the plain outside of town, two kids came shouting.

"Hey! Hey mister! Wait up! Hey!" one panted.

"Oi, top hat!" That got the group's attention. Blumiere was the only one who wore a top hat in Rogueport, even during the Carnival of Time.

The two kids hunched over once they caught up. One was female, wearing a green shirt and a pair of jeans, while the other was male and wore a worn out hoodie with buttons overtop their own jeans. Both of them wore knit caps, though the one wearing the hoodie had more buttons on the hat as well.

"Whew! Found you!" The one without the hoodie said.

"Jeez, couldn't you guys walk slower?"

"Not really…" Timpani responded.

"Oh! Sorry, didn't mean to hold you up. Here." The male dug something out of his pocket and gave it to Blumiere. "It's a hat accessory. You were really generous at my family's stall the other day, so we wanted to give you something. Thanks!"

The two kids dashed off again.

"What is it?" Luigi inquired.

Blumiere opened his hand. Then he burst out laughing, hunching over like the kids.

The group was surprised.

"Is the medicine still affecting you Blumiere?" Timpani asked her husband, putting a hand on his back.

The Count showed what was in his hand.

It was a slice of cake made out of colorful wire. There was a loop that would let him attach it to the ribbon on his hat.

Timpani had to laugh as well, but the rest of the group still looked really confused.

"It's an inside joke," she explained through her giggles.

"So… off we march?" Luigi asked, trying to ignore the laughing couple.

"Sure. Thanks again, Goombella," Mario said.

"Not an issue, Mustachio. But come back sometime, you hear?"

"When I can."

"Bye!" the group said as they left, walking father into the plain.

A few minutes passed.

"Does anybody know where we're actually going?" Bowser asked.

"Uh…"

"Nope."

"Haven't been here before."

"No."

"Not really?"

The King of Koopas facepalmed. "Well that was a good plan!"

A familiar door popped into existence in front of them.

"That's… convenient?" Daisy tried.

Bowser just sighed and opened the door, only to reveal another void behind it.

"Great," he managed to get in right before it sucked them all in.

It wasn't a long trip, just a few seconds, but the landing really could've been better.

"Ow," Luigi grumbled.

Blumiere put a hand to his own forehead, trying to stave off the headache.

Daisy picked up the book the count had dropped and opened it.

"Hey, wizard guy!" she exclaimed as she opened it to reveal Merlon already there.

"Hello, Princess. How goes the hunt for the Power Stars?"

"We got another one. Your fancy book say anything about funky doors?"

"The Light Prognosticus? No, but it does have a new prophecy for you all.

_On this island inhabited by a loyal friend,_

_Who will always have some aid to lend,_

_A hero's life they would not spare_

_If nature's rage weren't everywhere_

_Beware, Heroes, Beware…_

_You are now inside the monster's lair…_

_The magician's fault is shown_

_After all the vines have grown."_

"That's foreboding," Peach commented.

Merlon shrugged. "It's the end of the universe, Princess Peach."

"Thanks, Merlon." Daisy shut the book after Merlon responded, sitting it heavily in her lap.

Luigi shook his head. "Let's not just sit here. We need to find more Power Stars."

"How many, Luigi? It hasn't hinted towards the amount once!" Bowser exclaimed.

"I have a feeling we'll find out soon," Mario said.

"Yoshi?"

**A/N: You thought you were going to get a Mario story without Yoshi? Please, that green dinosaur is awesome and you know it!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**(Current Length: about 36.5 pages and 13,391 words in MS Word.)**


	9. Chapter 9

"Yoshi?"

Everyone turned to face the dinosaur… but it wasn't the familiar green they knew. This one was purple.

"It's a Yoshi!" Peach exclaimed.

"Boy howdy. Where'd we end up?" Daisy asked, surprised.

"Yoshi's Island," the Mario Bros. spoke in unison.

"I wasn't aware such a place existed," Blumiere commented.

"For good reason… this is the best kept secret of the Mushroom Kingdom. We'd appreciate it if you kept it that way," Mario spoke lowly.

The Yoshi looked at Mario.

"Yoshi! Yoshi! Yoshi! Perem-hah!" they squealed.

"Wait, what?" Mario asked.

"Yoshi yoshi!" The Yoshi seemed excited.

"Oh… thanks. It's nice to be back."

Everyone but Luigi looked at each other and shrugged.

Another Yoshi appeared, but this one was light blue in color.

"Yosh? Yoshi?" It asked Luigi.

"Yep, it's us."

"Yoshi! Perem-hah! Yo-Yoshi!"

"That's not necessary…" Luigi tried to reason, but to no avail. Both Yoshis ran off.

"Well, I guess we're getting the welcome crew," Mario said.

"What in tarnation?! This don't make any sense!" Daisy exclaimed.

Luigi placated her. "We should tell them Bro."

"I know." Mario gestured. "This is where Luigi and I were raised. The stork accidently dropped us here and the Yoshis took us in and cared for use until we were about… what, twelve?"

"Thirteen, Bro."

"Ah. Our mother found us. She had been searching for that entire time, along with our father, unfortunately. The Yoshis had taken care of us until then, but they somehow knew that mom was, well, our mom, and told us to go with her. We went back to the Mushroom Kingdom, where we still live today. Our house is so remote because it reminds us of this place. The Yoshis had sworn to protect us until our dying days, and since we were raised by them, we speak their language. But seriously. Keep this place under your hats. How many people do you know who'd want to try fried Yoshi egg?" Mario frowned.

"Too many!" Daisy grimaced.

"What did they say?" Peach tried to move off the gruesome topic.

Luigi shrugged helplessly. "He's getting the rest of the tribe. A green Yoshi named, well, Yoshi is the only one that travels outside of this island. It's believed he was or is a descendent of the one who raised us. We haven't seen him for awhile though."

"Yoshi yosh-yoshi yoshi-i."

"Yoshi!" Peach exclaimed, the familiar green dinosaur… dragon… turtle… hybrid walking into view, followed by many, many more Yoshis of all colors of the rainbow and beyond.

"Whoa…" Timpani whispered in awe. "They've been kept a secret all these years…"

"Yoshi says 'that's because you haven't been looking'," Luigi muttered to the rest of the group.

"We've been a bit busy," Mario defended.

"Yosh-yoshi-yo. Perem-yosh-yo-shi-i-yo. I perem."

"'I've noticed. Come. The chief wants to see you again before you head off,'" Luigi said.

"All of us or just you?" Bowser asked.

"If he wants to see us, he's seeing all of us. He can deal with that; he probably knows what's happening already," Mario said, "But let's not make him wait."

As the group started walking within the entourage of Yoshis, Luigi began talking with his brother. "He probably already knows, considering what Yoshi said."

"This… is not going to be a pleasant event, is it?" Mario asked rhetorically.

Luigi shrugged. "We'll find out."

They eventually made it back to a large network of caves. The largest was the first one you'd walk into, and apparently, where they were going.

A Yoshi slightly larger than average and the color of storm clouds stood before them. A daisy crown rested on his crest, showing his rank. Mario and Luigi kneeled. Princess Peach, Daisy, and Timpani curtsied, while Blumiere and Bowser bowed.

"Yo-yoshi-shi-i. Perem-shi-yo-o-i."

"Thank you." Luigi stood next to the rest of group and muttered to them, "He said I could translate for the new faces. Mario will speak, for the most part."

"Yoshi yoshi!" The Yoshi seemed to laugh.

"Welcome back," Luigi translated.

"It's nice to be back," Mario repeated.

"Yoshi-i-i-shi-o-yosh-o-i?"

"What is happening to the world?" Luigi spoke.

Mario began to explain the long story of what they had learned.

"We just now came from Rogueport. We currently have only two Stars."

The Yoshi laughed. "I-yo-yosh-yoshi-yo. Perem-hah- shi-o-shi-i-sh-o!"

Luigi blinked. "You already have many at your disposal. You only need three more."

Mario stated the confusion the rest of the group was feeling. "How do you know? And what other Stars?"

"Shi-shi-o-yosh-yo-yoshi?"

"The… Star Lady? Oh! Bro, he means Rosalina!" Luigi informed his brother.

"But she uses the Stars to power her observatory…  
"Yoshi yoshi yoshi-i-i-i-yosh hah-perem-shi-o?"

"If the universe is dead, what good is the observatory?"

"Fair point," Mario agreed before turning to his brother. "How many did we get there?"

"Shi-o-i-yo."

Luigi's eyes widened. "According to the chief, two hundred forty-two."

Mario choked on air.

"Wow… you were really busy up there, weren't you?" Daisy commented.

"Yoshi-shi-yosh-ii-hah! Yoshi-po-i?"

"That reminds me! Who are they?"

"These are our friends, chief. They've been working with us to get the Power Stars. These are Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, Lord Bowser, Count Blumiere and his wife, Lady Timpani," Mario introduced.

Luigi spoke over the Yoshi this time. "Good to meet you all, friends of Mario and Luigi! I am chief Rain-shi. I must apologize if I have scared any of you, but it has been years since any of us other than Yoshi have seen the two. Welcome to Yoshi's Island."

"Thank you, chief." Timpani inclined her head. "This island is beautiful!"

"Indeed," Blumiere agreed.

"I am glad you find our island pleasant. But please, keep the location a secret… too many people would come here and do things I dare not speak of. You all, of course, are welcome to come here, though you may wish to come with one of these two the first few times, as Yoshis tend not to trust new faces… but pleasantries is not the only reason I invited you here."

"Oh?"

"I hate to ask, as I am aware of what has occurred, at least partially… but there is a Boo that is terrorizing the new mothers… no Yoshi is allowed near the grounds. But you are not Yoshis. Could you help them please?"

Mario and Luigi bowed. "We'd be happy to."

"Again with the twin synch thing. Are you two absolutely sure you're not twins?" Bowser asked suspiciously.

"Yes. I'm about one year older," Mario said. He motioned for the group to follow him out of the cave and into another.

"Sure, sure…"

Daisy rolled her eyes. "What was that whole 'no Yoshis allowed' thing all about?" she inquired as they walked on.

"It's a protective measure from a few chiefs' rulings before this one," Luigi explained, "There was about… I think it was six male Yoshis on the island total. Breeding selection was non-existent and they knew it and took advantage of it for a long time… all Yoshis can produce eggs, but only females will have baby Yoshis inside. The males would come through and destroy some of the eggs. Eventually, the females found this cave networking and suck out the most remote one to lay their eggs in safely. This eventually led into the Egg Revolt and those males being dealt with. How they were is lost to history, but I don't imagine it pleasant. Yoshis can be brutal when they feel betrayed. But the rule still remains: no male Yoshis allowed into the Egg Grounds. Mario and I are allowed in, however; as the chief said, we aren't Yoshis. We usually ran around and helped them when we were here. Gathered food, water, comfy leaves, the like."

Mario nodded. "The thing about the Egg Grounds is that there's only one entrance leading to it but many leading out. That's why it was so difficult for those Yoshis to make it to them; the females protected the place. The Under Where hath no fury like an angry mama Yoshi."

All of them shivered. They had seen an annoyed Yoshi before, but a downright pissed one was scary in thought alone.

As they entered the grounds, the whole group gasped in awe. It was a virtual paradise for the Yoshis: a meadow filled with soft pastel flowers growing from the large amount of sunlight let in through an open roof covered by a thin layer of leaves. Vines with fruit grew around the edges of the area, plenty of food for both the new mothers and young Yoshis alike. Speaking of the inhabitants, there were many of all different colors. It was near impossible to tell a female Yoshi from a male Yoshi, so it looked like the cave but with a different background.

"Yosh-yo?" A white Yoshi asked.

"Hello," and here Mario said a name no one but Luigi knew could even _be _pronounced before continuing, "the chief sent us to take care of the Boo."

The Yoshi's face darkened. "Shi-yo-yo." The female pointed in the direction of the exit that would lead them to the Boo's lair. "Yoshi-yoshi-yosh-i-i-i-so-shi."

"Thank you," Luigi said. The Yoshi nodded and went on her way while the group went the way she had pointed.

"What did she say?" Bowser asked.

"Be careful; large," Luigi elaborated, but his face was confused. "She never said what was large though."

"We're just going to have to find out then," Peach said.

Mario led the way, Luigi keeping pace. Peach and Daisy followed them with Blumiere and Timpani right behind them. Bowser took up the rear.

No one spoke in the eerie cavern. The light from the Egg Grounds reached far, but even that couldn't change the atmosphere. The cave got colder as it went on.

Timpani started shivering, unused to the cold. Even during the cold spell in the Flower Kingdom, she had remained mostly indoors and had bundled up when she went outside.

Blumiere took off his galactic cape and wrapped it around his wife's shoulders, returning her smile in the slowly dimming cave.

"Eee hee hee hee! What do we have here?" a voice echoed from nowhere.

The whole group cast glances around. Bowser was the one who spotted it.

"Above! Move!" He grabbed Blumiere and Timpani and jumped back, just as the Mario Bros. did the same with the Princesses.

The giant Boo landed where they once were. And when I say giant, believe me: this thing was bigger than the Atomic Boo, about twice its size.

"Eee hee hee hee hee! Poor little mortals… afraid of lil old me?" The Boo dashed toward Mario and Daisy, who leapt to different sides to dodge.

"Oh, and not just any mortals! The ones raised by Yoshis! Do you know how _delicious _those eggs were?" the Boo laughed. It made a grab for Luigi and caught him, but even Luigi wasn't concerned.

"Oh, look! It's Mr. Gullible! How was our mansion?"

Luigi just grinned evilly. "Big mistake."

"Oh?"

"I'm feeling lucky." Luigi launched himself forward, headfirst, toward the Boo at point-blank range. The Boo was knocked flat on its back and let go of Luigi, who dusted himself off.

The others moved in now. Bowser breathed fire on it while Timpani fired homing shots. Peach threw vegetables, but an occasional boom marked the Bob-Ombs that she'd occasionally pluck.

Daisy kept hitting golf balls towards them, occasionally shouting "Four!" as she launched her mega-sized ball.

Mario and Luigi both ate fire flowers and launched fireballs towards it while Blumiere made ice crystals and launched them at high speeds with his magic.

All the attacks hit the Boo hard, but it wasn't going down without a fight. It swung its arm out, hitting the person closest, who happened to be Timpani. She went rolling for a few feet, but she got up slowly, some new scratches on her face.

"Perem-hah!" The white Yoshi from earlier threw an egg at the Boo, drawing its attention away from the injured shooter. The group redoubled their attacks with the Yoshi throwing eggs, but the Boo was clever. It went after Timpani, ignoring all the shots from everyone else and knocked her away again into a wall. The Fire Flowers had run out just a few seconds ago, leaving the Count as the only one with a range long enough to get the Boo, but it moved too quickly for him to react. Blumiere could only watch as his wife slammed against the wall and slumped to the ground, the glow on her mecha arm fading.

The Boo laughed maniacally, not noticing the look of utter rage on Blumiere's face. "Eee hee hee hee hee! One down, seven more to go!"

The Boo prepared to bring its arm down on Timpani. It never got the chance.

"Yosh-i-i-i-yosh!"

"_Hit the deck!_" Mario translated, covering Peach with one of his arms and bringing her down with him. He held onto her and onto his cap with his other arm, watching. Luigi did the same with Daisy and Bowser copied the actions with the Yoshi. Blumiere ignored the words.

All this happened within the span of a brief handful of seconds, just in time for a harsh wind blew through.

Blumiere shouted in his strange language before switching back to the one everyone understood. _**"Grow!"**_

The earth obeyed. Vines and roots erupted out of the ground and encased the Boo within their grasps. Small leaves grew over top.

The Yoshi moved to get up, but Bowser kept his arm in place as he saw Timpani give him a tired warning look.

Again, Blumiere shouted in his language. A volatile wind blew through, and with a _snap_, the plant matter blazed in a raging inferno. As quickly as it had begun, it stopped. Blumiere collapsed forward as the dust from the winds cleared, falling flat on his face.

Mario looked at where the Boo was and only saw an Invisible Sheet. He looked towards Blumiere and started out of shock. The white Yoshi carried an exhausted but conscious Timpani to her husband.

Everyone else mimicked Mario's reaction to Blumiere.

Gone was the humanoid form they had been so used to seeing him in. Now he looked more like the Count Bleck the original heroes had first seen all that time ago. His face contorted as they watched, but he did not awaken.

"Yoshi-yosh-shi-i-yosh-perem," the white Yoshi said, knocking them out of their stupor. Luigi started translating again.

"Let's get somewhere safe." Luigi picked up the light-weight Count before following the Yoshi back to the Egg Grounds.

"Ow," Timpani muttered as the Yoshi gently lowered her onto the ground. "I think this is how… you felt when you… were smashed against that… wall…" she panted. "Where…Where's Blumiere?"

Daisy gestured a little ways away. "Under that tree. He seems to burn easily and I don't think we have aloe," she tried to joke.

Timpani smiled a bit at her friend's attempt. "Eh, it would… be funny to see him… baked again…" She looked over and frowned when she saw him. "Of course he… overexerted him… self with that…"

"With what?" Bowser asked genuinely.

"His human… form is only a spell… a glamour spell… it changes appearances… it's hard to explain… he'd do better… I'll get him to tell you… later… right now, sleep…" the Lady closed her eyes and sighed, shifting small amounts to get comfortable on the flowers in the Egg Grounds.

Peach searched her bag, but the Yoshi grabbed her arm, handing her an egg.

"Are you sure?"

The Yoshi nodded, and Peach opened the egg. She gently woke up Timpani before pouring the contents down her throat, making sure she swallowed before letting her sleep once more.

"I wish I had something for Blumiere…" Peach lamented.

"What about a mushroom?" Luigi asked.

"He's allergic to the darn things," Daisy puffed.

Mario blinked but pushed on. "What about a Jelly Ultra or a piece of the candies, Princess Peach?"

Peach shook her head. "I don't dare give him a piece of caramel… I fear he may fall asleep while chewing and choke."

"He also gets pretty whack whenever my girl here gives him healing items. Heck, even watered down herbal remedies screwed him up for a bit!" Daisy exclaimed.

"So, here's to hoping he gets better because we really don't have anything to help him." Bowser plopped down. The Yoshi followed suit, curling up and watching everyone. The Mario Bros. and princesses joined them on the ground. It was peaceful, for the most part. Cries of young Yoshis and female Yoshis echoed around a bit and soothed their injured friends, the tenseness in their muscles fading.

Mario and Luigi seemed at peace as well, sort of whistling under their breaths to a familiar melody.

But it didn't last long.

"Oh ho ho ho ho! So now you are as tired as a slug after a marathon! Such lovely pickings…" Dimentio's voice sounded.

No one even reacted.

"Hello?! I'm talking to you!"

The white Yoshi's eyes blinked slowly.

The demented jester finally appeared, fuming.

"I am speaking!" he shouted. An egg hit him in the head, courtesy of the Yoshi, who started jabbering.

All of the group finally seemed to take in their surroundings and jumped. As soon as they saw the look on the Yoshi's face, they all ran near Blumiere, who was still slumbering under the tree. Bowser gently picked up Timpani on the way before placing her next to her husband.

Dimentio completely ignored the Yoshi. "Are the heroes tired? Ah ha ha ha ha! A little thing like that nearly knocked you all out? Ah ha ha ha ha ha!"

His gloating didn't last long.

"_**Perem-hah!**__"_ the white Yoshi shouted. All the mother Yoshis came to her call. Not even Dimentio could make enough copies to counter them all.

"_Yosh…i!"_ All drew eggs and launched them at Dimentio. He tried to avoid them, but there were just too many. But the Yoshis weren't done.

"_Perem-hah!"_ the white one from earlier shouted. One by one, each of the Yoshi's began ground-pounding Dimentio.

"Ow ow ow! Get off me, you stupid lizards!" Not even his happy-go-crazy attitude could withstand the onslaught of Yoshis.

"The Under Where… hath no fury like… an angry mama Yoshi, right?" Timpani panted to her friends, awoken by the noise.

The group nodded, watching. Eventually, Dimentio was forced to teleport away without a word. The white Yoshi turned to the group and struck a proud pose.

"Thank you." Mario, Luigi, and Bowser bowed while Peach and Daisy curtseyed.

"Yoshi-shi-i-yo-hah-so-perem. Shi-shi-shi. Yoshi," the white female spoke.

"No, thank you. Return to my mate, he has something for you," Luigi muttered, translating for the others.

The group did just that, Bowser carrying a half-awake Timpani and Luigi slinging the count over his back. As they entered the caves, cheers were heard, but they quickly died down, noticing the states of the heroes.

"What's this? Are you injured? How can we help? Was it that Boo? Oh, I'm so sorry, hatchlings…" Luigi interpreted the frantic voice of the Yoshi chief.

"We'll be fine, chief. We took some hard hits, but Timpani got the worst of it. She'll be okay, though. Top hat there is just tired," Mario explained.

The Yoshi chief bowed his head. "We are in your debt, young heroes. Take this with you." He pulled a Power Star from somewhere on his person. "I would've given it to you earlier, had I had it at that time. The foragers recently found it. If you need a place to stay, your old tree house is still there. We did basic maintenance on it, so it should be fine for a few nights, at least."

"Thank you for your generosity."

The Yoshi's head tilted and said something Luigi didn't translate. Here's what he said:

"What did he do to you two to make you forget that you will always be our children?"

The Mario Brother's faces went dark. Not a word was spoken as they left, the grey Yoshi watching them sadly.

"Yoshi," he said after they had left, "what have we missed?"

The green lizard sighed. "Too much. They've grown now."

"For better or for worse?"

"Time will tell, Rain-shi. Time will tell."

Meanwhile, the group had successfully made it to the aging tree house. There was enough room for all of them to sleep, luckily. They placed Blumiere and Timpani on one of the beds while the princesses shared the other. Mario and Luigi slept on the sofa while Bowser claimed the last seat, a recliner that was a little too small for him but would do for a few nights.

And so the heroes fell asleep, more questions than answers in their minds.

**A/N: Lame fight be lame. I just really wanted overprotective Blumiere, okay? And besides, magic has a variety of stances it can take, considering no one can use it in real life, and since Blumiere is our only trained magician… well. This is supposed to be centric on Blumiere and Timpani.**

**And will Yoshi join our heroes? Eh, probably. Haven't given it much thought yet, but what's a Mario game without at least a mention of Yoshi?**

…**Also, the fight scene with Dimentio was originally totally different. But as was said, hell hath no fury like an angry mama Yoshi. And Dimentio threatened Mario and Luigi, who are basically the Yoshi's eternal children. So…. Reasons.**

**Also, the whole pissed off Luigi "I'm feeling lucky" thing? In Smash Bros Brawl and SSB4 (as far as I'm aware, at least), there's a 1-in-10 chance Luigi's side special will land a super-powered strike…**

**Hopefully the next chapter will be better, and I can **_**finally**_** stop saying there are more questions than answers.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own ideas.**

**(Current Length: 47 pages and 17,068 words in MS Word.)**


	10. Chapter 10

Remember how last chapter I said that our heroes fell asleep? Well, sort of. Timpani and Blumiere had spent the past few hours recovering, so now their sleep schedules were screwed up until the following night.

They had gently woken Bowser and told him to claim the bed, which he did without complaint. They then took his spot on the recliner.

Timpani knew it was one of those nights. They could sit together in the recliner and enjoy each other's presence silently and ignore the things that needed to be said. Or they could acknowledge they needed to talk and say some things that needed to be said. If just let go, the subjects would eventually fester into a problem.

So Timpani got up and quietly got some mugs and withdrew some hot chocolate packets from her pack. She took some water from a barrel in the kitchen that Mario had pointed out earlier in case someone got thirsty in the night. Blumiere used a bit of his magic to boil the water quickly and quietly, allowing his wife to make them the warm drink without waking anyone.

He knew what was about to come, so he savored his hot chocolate. Once they were both done, he knew, the conversation would start.

The conversation came too soon for his liking, but he knew he needed to get it over with.

"What happened?" Timpani asked, leaving the answer up to him.

"A great many things, my dear. A great many things…"

"After the Boo got me?" she offered some elaboration.

"No one could reach you… I was the only one who had the range to, but it all happened too quickly. You got slammed against a wall and your arm's glow faded. I remembered you saying once that it was an indication of the health of the user, and I feared the worst… perhaps 'feared' isn't correct…"

"I remember. Instinctual magic?"

"Yes… it hurt, not knowing if you'd be okay…"

Timpani placed her hand over her husband's. "You overexerted yourself with that amount of magic."

It wasn't a question, but Blumiere nodded anyway.

"I told the others you'd explain the glamour spell you placed on yourself… I did not say the reasoning, but with this bunch, the question why is inevitable."

Blumiere kissed the top of her head. "I know, my dear. I shall deal with that when the time comes."

Timpani nodded. "There's another thing we need to talk about."

"The return of my home realm." Blumiere's face contorted, disliking the idea of associating 'home' with that godforsaken place.

"Well, more of the book, actually," Timpani clarified, "there's not really much to say about the Necrealm coming back."

Blumiere frowned. "That's the truth. The book… I don't have much of an explanation or even a hypothesis for."

"Rosalina and Merlon did say they didn't know if time was stable… perhaps Luigi in the future gives it to Fracktail?"

Blumiere shook his head. "I'm not saying I don't doubt the optical receptors on that ancient robot, but the prophecy books do have a strict set of rules. The Light Prognosticus will only react if the Dark is being used, and only if the end is not yet to come. Both will speak in rhymes and riddles, usually only able to be deciphered by one person or the subjects _after_ the event has been foretold. But the most stable rule is that each subject will only be addressed by one name unless they are part of the group. Luigi will always be the 'man in green', just as Mario will always be the 'hero of prophecy', or Yoshi the 'loyal friend'. It cannot be Luigi who will take the book."

Timpani nodded in understanding. "Perhaps its someone the others know… they mentioned a 'Sonic' but they didn't really go into detail about how they met him."

Blumiere pulled her closer. "We all have our secrets, my dear."

"Hm. I just hope they don't come from behind and bite us." Timpani closed her eyes. There was probably only an hour or so until the others woke up, so for now, she was just going to enjoy some quiet time with her husband.

"I hope that as well," the Count murmured, closing his eyes as well.

**A/N: Hey, things needed to be explained and I thought I thought it was an okay transition.**

**What I wrote about prophecies is true, for the most part… every one I've read has addressed someone by their 'title', so to speak. Like how Mario was always addressed as the 'hero of the prophecy' because that's what the book said.**

**Also, the reason behind the weird printing of the books: Merlon says he's trying to translate the book for Mario during the game. But assuming he had it for years and studied it for as long as he had it, wouldn't you think he'd know a good 85-90% of the thing before Tippi even took Mario to Flipside? So I thought the reasonable explaination is that there were already a few pages, and that Merlon was waiting for the other ones to appear to be translated (because I'm also assuming that the language has changed over time).**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own ideas.**

**(Current length: about 49 pages and 17,905 words in MS Word.)**


	11. Chapter 11

Timpani was right. About an hour later, Luigi woke up, shortly followed by his brother and the two princesses. All of them let Bowser sleep in a bit more; they knew that with the extent of his fire breathing the other day and worrying about the kids would leave him exhausted.

The Count aided the brothers in making breakfast for everyone with his magic. Small tasks like boiling the water or washing the dishes were left to him, as the brothers knew more about their old home than he did. He helped carry the tray of grilled fruits and cheese sandwiches back to the group before settling down next to his wife again.

Bowser woke up to the scent of food. A few gestures from the brothers and everyone started eating, though the Count only ate scant amounts.

Well, when you're only the upper half of a body, you only need so much food…

After the quiet meal, everyone just sort of… sat around. No one was quiet sure how to start the conversation.

Finally, Daisy just threw her hands up. "I give! What's up with the glamour doo-hickey my sweet girl mentioned the other day?"

Blumiere tipped his hat, though out of shame, sadness, or embarrassment was unknown. "Have you lot ever noticed how many people stare when they see me? Purple skin is not a common trait… being half a body that floats is even less common."

"So you used magic to make yourself look different to blend in with us more?" Mario inquired.

"More or less."

"I can see it," Luigi commented, gaining stares. "What? Oh come on, we've _all_ tried blending in at some point. Was it for a different reason? Probably, but it still makes a lot of sense."

"True. But what I don't understand is why you never told us?" Peach turned back to Blumiere.

The Count could only shrug. "It never came up, and there was never a good time to bring it up."

They all tilted their heads to the side and nodded. It was the truth, after all.

"Now I have a question for you," Timpani spoke up, addressing the two brothers. "What did the chief say that made you react so strangely? And furthermore, why did you say it was unfortunate that your father came with your mother?"

The two capped brothers looked at each other and let loose a long-suffering sigh simultaneously.

"He was… not a good man," Luigi started, making his red counterpart snort.

"Understatement. He did things to our mother and us that I'd rather not delve into. It took a long time to get over that part of our lives and I'd rather not bother old wounds."

Timpani nodded in acceptance. She knew a thing or two about disapproving father figures.

"The recent events do bring up a question, though…" Bowser started, gaining everyone's attentions, "Where the heck to do we go next?"

Everyone shrugged. "We should probably call wizard-guy. He's probably figured out some more of that book of his."

A sudden knocking interrupted those plans. Mario went and opened the door, inviting Yoshi inside.

"Shi-i-yoshi," he said.

"Hello." Luigi began translating again.

"Will you be joining us?" Peach inquired. Yoshi thought about it, then shook his… hand? Paw? I'm just gonna stick with hand. Anyway, he shook his hand in a "kinda" motion.

Mario nodded, seemingly knowing what the lizard meant. "Thank you, Yoshi. We were just about to see where we had to go next."

Yoshi nodded and took a seat in a basket of blankets near the fireplace. Most had just assumed it was a basket of laundry that was never done, but they were proved wrong by the previous actions.

It was Blumiere who opened the book this time around. Merlon's face greeted them, as if he was just about to call them.

"How did it… go…?" Merlon trailed off as he saw the exhausted states of the heroes.

"Overall? Not bad, considering there have been worse fights in our adventures," Mario said.

Blumiere coughed.

Merlon raised an eyebrow but dropped the subject. "I am assuming you all are confused as to where to go next and how to get there?"

"First part yes, second part no," Luigi replied.

"Here's what the Light Prognosticus told me:

_The guy in green_

_Is finally seen_

_Go to the magician's dreaded lair,_

_But fear not, the universe does care_

_A curse now rests upon the miserable_

_And though the solution is quizzical_

_The storm shall be settled, the parent's approval,_

_Love is certainly renewable._

That's all for now… I assume you know where to go?"

Blumiere nodded. "Yes."

"Good luck, heroes. Neither Rosalina nor I have discovered more information, but several of the doors here in Flipside have been sealed… be careful, my friends."

"We will be, Merlon. Try and help Rosalina with those Lumas, alright?" Timpani asked.

Merlon bowed his head. "Of course, Lady Timpani. I bid you all adieu." And with that, the book was closed.

Noticing the Count's mood, Mario had to ask "So on a scale of one to invading the Bob-Omb city in the middle of winter, how screwed are we?"

"Kicking King Floro out of art school," Blumiere replied without missing a beat.

"Well. Crap," Bowser stated everyone's thoughts.

**A/N: Short chapter be short? Nah, just a lack of transitions. On with the story!**

Mario and Luigi guided them all to a cave with a door on the front. Blumiere, now fully recovered, had once again casted his glamour spell and regained his legs.

"It hasn't been used in years," Luigi translated over Yoshi, "what are you hoping to accomplish?"

"It's the only transportation we can hope to use… I can still manipulate voids, even if it is only tweaks. That's all we need to get to where we need to go," Blumiere stated. "I refused to even think about manipulating these again… but sometimes you have to do what you must."

"Good luck. You'll see me around," Yoshi said.

The two closest people opened the doors, the two being Mario and Daisy. A purple void was behind there, just as they suspected. Blumiere tapped the side of the void with his cane before it sucked all of them in. No one was quite sure what happened to Yoshi, but they knew he'd be okay. Meanwhile, they tumbled and tossed around through the limitless area until they were dropped unceremoniously on the ground.

"Oof," was the collective response.

AS they looked around, the Mushroom and Flower Kingdom gang took in the sights. The realm's color scheme was certainly different than the bright colors they had seen so far. Blumiere had perfect camouflage here, as the area was all dark shades of purple, red, blue, and green. Of course, the monochrome colors were there as well: brown, white, grey, and black. It was certainly beautiful in its own right, but Blumiere crinkled his face as if he smelled sewage.

"You have got to be bloody kidding me," he said loud enough for them to hear. They were surprised at the slight accent in his voice, but he quickly continued before anyone could comment. "Welcome to the Necrealm… home of the Tribe of Darkness." He tilted his hat over his eyes.

"Should we leave?" Peach suggested. "I mean, didn't Rain-shi say we only needed two more Stars? Surely there are more in other places…"

Blumiere shook his head and began whispering. "The Light Prognosticus said we must come here… we don't have much time to seek out any other Stars that may exist."

Timpani nodded. "Even the Tribe must agree with the laws of Light and Dark… despite how much they may dislike it."

Daisy picked up on their moods quickly and moved to show her support. "Some respectin' they did, launching you like that. It's like Ike against Jigglypuff in a land battle!"

"Who?" the couple asked.

"It's unfair." Daisy skipped the reference to clarify for the two members who _weren't_ in the tournament gone wrong.

"Let's just hurry… _this place gives me the creeps…"_ Peach hummed lightly, before looking really confused. "Um… I didn't mean to do that…"

"It could be the curse," Luigi suggested. "The Tribe certainly doesn't seem like people who would enjoy randomly bursting into song."

"Most certainly not," Blumiere agreed, "let's just find the Star and go…"

It wasn't long before a resident walked up to them… but it wasn't about to be a pleasant meeting.

"Blumiere? Or is it still Bleck?" a man who looked quite similar to Blumiere without the glamour spell demanded.

No one spoke to him.

"Are you going to ignore your own father?"

"No man with the title of father would've done something so heinous to his daughter-in-law… or thought the son would be okay with it…" Blumiere commented, not even looking at him.

The man shrugged and looked pointedly at Timpani. "I see she's still alive…"

"No thanks to you," the couple muttered under their breaths.

"Even you must respect the rules, Blumiere. Light and Dark were never supposed to mix."

Daisy couldn't stand this man's arrogance anymore. "Dawn? Sunset? Twilight? The concept of a day? Ringing a bell here?"

The man had no reply.

"Besides, it wasn't the ancients who made that rule… it was modern society. Though I suppose we know how you feel about that." Blumiere elegantly flicked his cape and stalked away. The group left, following Blumiere.

"That went well," a voice that was familiar to some came forth.

Everyone but Blumiere and Timpani turned around to see Link standing there, dressed in his green hero garb. The Master Sword still rested on his back, even though he had claimed to have long since returned it. He was smiling, but the group saw dark circles and new scratches on his face. They suspected his attire hid more injuries.

"Link!" Bowser exclaimed. "This is…"

"Unexpected? Man, Luigi, I thought you could do the Lakebed Temple blindfolded!" Link had turned to the other man in green.

Sassy as per usual. It seemed not even the voids could alter his type of personality…

"But yeah, here I am." Link gestured at himself.

"I'm sorry, who are you?" Timpani asked.

"Name's Link. I see you've got a few newcomers, Mario. They gonna be in the next tournament?"

"I'm Timpani, and this is my husband, Blumiere. Probably not, to answer your question. We're not particularly inclined towards competitions."

"Ooh, a pair of hitchers! Congrats you two." Link shook both their hands.

"What are you doing here, though, of all places? I thought you'd be helpin girlie over there in that blessed country of yours," Daisy said.

Link's smile faded. "That's why I'm here… sort of. I'm not the Hero of Time, paradoxes aren't my shindig, you know? They fly over my head like Bulbin arrows. But somehow I still managed to get myself stuck in one. The universes are collapsing, as I'm sure you know. But what you don't know is that the Void is on the outside working in, towards its source."

"Wait, so that means…" Luigi was the first to piece it together, horror spreading over his face.

Link nodded. "Hyrule has already collapsed. I'm not too worried, which is strange. Maybe it's because I know bits of the future already."

Blumiere nodded. "That is often comforting, having an idea of what is to come. I also assume, however, that you know your universe can be restored?"

Link nodded. "If we ever meet up again, I'll see if I can get letters to everyone to come and explain Subspace to you. But the point is that I have stuff I need to tell you before everyone runs around like Cuccoos attacked with bombs. You know that book you've got, Top Hat?"

"Why is it always the top hat?" Blumiere muttered.

"You're the only one wearing one. Anyway, you're supposed to get that from your parent's library and then give it to me so I can give it to Fracktail in the past." Link dug something out of his endless pocket, pulling out a small, blue object. "I may have… borrowed this from Time; long story short, time, _then_ space collapsed in Hyrule so I got to meet some pretty cool people. I can travel through time with this. I'm the only one here who can actually travel through time."

"You can't?" Daisy addressed Blumiere, who shook his head.

"Time and magic don't go well. I'd give you an example, but all are horrific. We tell them as coming-of-age stories, gruesome warnings to budding magicians to never mess with the flow of time."

"Ah, so that's how I was supposed to learn that. Anyway, there's a catch because of freaking course there is! But yeah, that whole _curse_ thing? It affects _everyone_, except maybe me. Something about still being from a different universe and not being affected by some of the rules, or something. I was kind of bummed I didn't get to defy physics. But, yeah, that's the gist of it. Oh! And apparently I'll be accompanying you for at least a little while on your journey. There is a place I leave you, but apparently I hang with you all for awhile."

"I think that's the most you've ever talked," Bowser commented.

Link shrugged. "Lots to say."

"Wait, what about the other contestants? Dedede? Sonic? Fox?" Luigi frantically asked Link.

Link's face darkened. "As far as I know, they're gone… all of them… you guys are the last ones left. Zelda managed to get enough information to me before I fell through a Void. Not to mention you guys from… later? Earlier? Paradoxes," he cursed.

Peach and Daisy gasped. "Even Ice Climbers and little Kirby?" the pink princess asked.

Link bowed his head. "Even they. None were spared… even Collin, Beth, and Ilia… I can only assume they're with the universe in whatever limbo state it's in."

All but Blumiere and Timpani were sad. The former two were more confused than anything, but Timpani knew what she needed to do.

"So are we just gonna sit around and let them waste away? We need to move it, people! From your comments, it appears that it is not only our universe at stake, but many others, and little children's lives! So we can either sit around and let them waste away, or we can do what Mr. Pointy Hat over here told us to do and get a move on for those Stars!" She clapped her hands, startling everyone.

"She's right," Blumiere added, "There is no doubt in my mind, this is what we must do."

"And how are you going to do that, son, when you're not even allowed in the house?" the man, Blumiere's father, had appeared from nowhere.

Blumiere narrowed his eyes instead of shying away. His orange eyes burned.

"I will do what I must. Even _you_ must respect the fact that young lives are at stake."

The man shrugged. "It's of no consequence to me."

"Um, actually, dude, yes it really freaking is," Link interrupted, "you know, the whole spiel I just doled out? Not for pranks! Your universe will end."

"The Dark Prognosticus told of this. I have no fear."

Mario rolled his eyes. "Well, I for one, am not about to let _infants_ die," he said harshly. Luigi seemed to mutter something in Yoshi in agreement. The red capped brother turned to the Count. "Which way to the house? I've got no issue with starting a different rep here." Mario cracked his knuckles.

"Not necessary… it's about an hour's walk in that direction." Blumiere pointed while jabbing the ground with his cane. His father tried to move but couldn't.

"Ah, libraries… lovely places," the Count commented whimsically as he walked the direction he pointed, sort of reminding the group of Dimentio. They all shuddered at the thought of the demented jester.

They were about ten minutes into the walk when Link asked a question, bored of silence.

"So how'd you two hitchers meet anyway?" He placed his hands behind his head. "It's not every day I see you guys."

"We have to spill eventually, don't we?" Timpani asked no one in particular.

"Might as well."

"Well, first thing you have to know is I jumped off a cliff," Blumiere said casually.

"_What?"_ the group exploded.

"Not like that… I can still fly!" He rolled his eyes. "But I misjudged, and a wind blew me into the cliffside. I woke up in a strange and colorful realm: Timpani's."

"It was really quite strange! Daisy, I hope you're writing this all down for Goombella's sake."

"I got y'all covered!" Daisy had, in fact, produced a pen and notepad from… somewhere. Probably the same place Peach got Toads in the tournament.

"As I was saying, it was strange! A well dressed man, falling from the sky. It was sunset, so most people were already home. I was tending the flowers, though, which is why I found Blumiere."

"I woke up and saw her. I jumped nearly ten feet away and brandished my cane."

"Love at first sight," Link commented sarcastically.

"Hardly. She raised her mecha arm at me and shot. The paralyze shots live up to their name."

"After a conversation that goes amongst the lines of 'who are you' and 'uh… an alien?' that eventually got us to introduce general policies, he asked a very strange question."

"_My fair lady,_

_Why do these flowers bloom_

_When they know that their end will be here soon?_

_Why do these flowers bloom so bright, _

_When frost may take their lives tonight?_

_Why, oh flower girl,_

_Do the flowers bloom?" _Blumiere sang, recalling. He didn't seem to notice he had sang the last few lines, looking somewhere no one else could see.

"_My Count that fell from the sky,_

_None know for sure the reason why_

_Our rainbow blooms do show_

_When their life expectancy is low._

_But I understand them, I believe_

_And just by looking, it will be conceived."_

"_Tell me, my fair lady,_

_Why do these flowers bloom when the future is so shady?"_

"_My sir, this is what I've come to know:_

_Too much rain or not enough sun or even snow_

_Will one day take these flowers away_

_But the blooms know of the smiles they'll bring today…_

_That, dear Count, is why_

_These flowers will bloom, only to die."_

"_And this is how the years went by,"_

"_I asked of his, he asked of mine,"_

"_And slowly the string was woven,_

_And could not ever be broken…"_

"_But then the shadows fell,"_

"_And collapsed upon our wedding bell."_

The two trailed off, eyes cast towards the sky.

Daisy held up her phone. "It's okay that I recorded that part, right?"

"Well, I did promise Goombella a backstory," Timpani shrugged, "the fact that it comes in song form would probably just throw her into a laughing fit."

Blumiere muttered darkly under his breath. Everyone else sniggered at his reaction to singing.

"Well, that song somehow took up most of the hour…" Blumiere trailed off, frowning as he spotted familiar house nearby. "That can't be right."

"It is… don't worry about it too much now, it will be explained…" Link replied vaguely.

Blumiere nodded, trusting the new fellow. He didn't really have much of a choice: his old house was right in front of them. They stood at the door, waiting.

Blumiere sighed. He slowly raised his fist and knocked.

The door creaked open, revealing another member of the Tribe dressed in an outfit similar to Blumiere's own, only theirs was dark green.

"Big… big brother?" the voice murmured disbelievingly.

"'Tis I, Ariel." The Count grinned sadly.

"Big Brother! Big Brother! You're back! And Aunt Timpani! Father didn't succeed!" The little girl flew around in a loop before becoming serious. "Did he see you? Is he coming?"

"Yes, not for awhile. Heck, it's a miracle we didn't run into any of the other members…"

"Other members gone. Praying. The curse, the curse…" Ariel whispered.

"Ariel, look at me. We'll help, all right? But we need to do something first. Do you know where-" something in a strange language, similar to the words Blumiere had previously used, was uttered here, "is?"

The girl nodded. "Where you left it, Big Brother! It wouldn't let Father touch it…"

"Good," Blumiere laughed, "Then I have not yet lost my touch for Protection Charms!"

"Oh no." Ariel pulled out a pennant. "This still works too!"

"Oh?" Blumiere examined it. "I could make it better, you know."

Ariel shook her head as she led the group. "Let him suffer his own undoing. Many of the Tribe are horrified at his actions toward Aunt Timpani. Let him try to justify hurting me in court."

"Are they horrified of me… are you scared… of me?"

The group had never seen Blumiere look so unsure of himself, not even when local customs caught him off guard.

"No, no! Understanding… sympathy. Tad of anger, gone… but returning…praying, praying…"

"Shh, Ariel… find your peace, little one."

Ariel shook head. "Here!" She pointed at a pedestal. "Book!"

Blumiere patted her head. "Thank you, Ariel." He carefully removed the book of its pedestal and handed it to Link, who put it in his infinite pocket. The older copy of the book weighed heavily in Blumiere's cloak pocket.

"You must leave now. Prayers ending," Ariel spoke in a curious manner.

Blumiere knelt down and hugged her. "Of course, little sister."

They all left, Ariel waving goodbye.

It was the first time they had seen Blumiere cry.

"Why does she speak so oddly?" Peach asked kindly.

"She's prophecy inclined… that's why the village still holds my father in slight respect, for raising her. What they don't know is that he abuses her." Blumiere wiped his eyes. "I knew what I was going to do after my father tried to kill Timpani… so I made her a protection charm. Ironic how that was my strength and yet I failed to protect you…"

Timpani shrugged. "I could handle myself, and you know that. Son of a Boo only got to me because of a sneak attack, the coward."

Blumiere sighed. "One of my few regrets after becoming Count Bleck; leaving her behind. The Tribe sent her away before the world was destroyed, though. I knew they would."

Wind blew through the trees, a whistling sound echoing around.

"Come with me to the Prayer Cave. Perhaps there is something we can do about this curse."

Luigi and Link remained behind as everyone forged ahead after the Count.

"The storm shall be settled, the parent's approval," Luigi recalled.

"Love is certainly renewable," Link finished, blinking at Luigi's surprised reaction. "What? You guys drilled every prophecy that even remotely involved me into my head."

"I don't think we're going to get approval from his father anytime soon." Luigi changed the subject.

"Then don't look for it there. The Zant wanna-be doesn't deserve kids, if what I've heard is any indication," Link commented, walking after the group.

Luigi whistled under his breath. That was a pretty serious insult, coming from Link. He too hurried to catch up with the group.

Off in the distance, dark clouds could be seen, and they were moving in quickly…

**A/N: Yes, Blumiere has a sibling. He never talks about her to keep her safe. I mean, come on, how many people do you know who would want to know the future? Besides, we didn't really get much about Blumiere in-game.**

**Furthermore, yes, Link is indeed the 'guy in green'. Here's the list of hints that were thrown at you in the last few chapters:**

**One of the first A/Ns: "It will stay within the Nintendo franchise and mostly in Mario's part of that." **_**Mostly**_**. The small part that doesn't is the guy in green himself.**

**Fracktail's commentary: "A strange guy in green said that someone would need this**… **It was if he was not of this realm."**

**The first two lines of the second prophecy: "**_**The guy in green is a mystery/His identity lies in your history". **_**I'm pretty sure Link has been around since the first Smash Bros, and even if not, the story implies this takes place after Brawl, which came after Melee, so he does share history with the two brothers.**

**The mentions of characters from Brawl, such as Sonic, and also the storyline of Subspace Emissary. A subtle hint, but it showed that the characters were all from different universes. I understand that there were different colorings and that it very well could've been Toon Link or Zelda or anyone else who could dress in green as an alternate color scheme, but the other hints show it's Link.**

**The next hint was pretty obvious for those who know some details about Majora's Mask. The Carnival of Time is what the whole game is centered about; the Moon falls on the Day of the Carnival or the last day of it. I was never really clear on that front; it certainly didn't look like a carnival…**

**The note: "You forget these like I forget some of my items." This is basically making fun of how useless some of the items are in Twilight Princess. I mean, you use the Gale Boomerang… twice in required game play, maybe five if you go for 100%? Link's naturally going to forget about **_**some**_** of them…**

**The fact the characters can use some their moves from Smash Bros. Specifically Brawl and Melee, which I've played and are chronologically in this fic. SSB4 has not yet occurred.**

**Blumiere tells us it's not Luigi due to the rules of prophecies: everyone has a title they are addressed by specifically. Blumiere will always be "the magician", Mario will always be the "hero of prophecy", and Luigi "the man in green". This was actually a bit difficult to write, seeing as most the prophecies I write are some form of poetry. I was originally using man instead of guy. It was my previously mentioned friend who helped me alter that.**

**Also, I've been getting into Kirby recently, so there's his honorable mention of his world being stuck in Limbo. This is going by the cartoon's cannon, for the most part, where Kirby is just a baby. It's that somewhat aged cartoon, "Kirby: Right Back at Ya!" or "Kirby of the Stars". It's on YouTube if you doubt me.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except my own ideas.**

**And after that really freaking long A/N, what's our count look like?**

**(Current Length: about 61 pages and 22,335 words in MS Word.)**


	12. Chapter 12

Link wasn't kidding when he said the curse would affect everyone. Everyone started humming something or another along the walk to the Prayer Cave. It was rather funny, especially when the tournament goers hummed a song from some previous incarnation of Link that this Link knew. He'd take out the ocarina and start playing the song with them, making everyone chuckle. Blumiere and Timpani got an awesome harmony going before it devolved into a back-and-forth melody competition that sounded pretty amazing. The group may have smiled, but it never quite reached any of their eyes. They had very little idea of what they had to do, and they also knew that they had a steadily smaller time frame in which to do what needed to be done. Even now, they knew more Voids were hiding in disused areas, and some were even moving to more populated zones.

This was apparent as they entered the Prayer Cave Blumiere had led them to. No one was there. Larger versions of the crystal Luigi had given the couple as a housewarming gift glittered, uncaring.

"Is your sister tuned into the right channel?" Bowser asked frankly.

Blumiere frowned deeper, but said nothing.

Timpani shivered. "This place feels… wrong."

Link grimaced. "It feels like Twilight sent by Zant. Twisted out of shape, bent…"

Blumiere touched one of the walls. His white glove pulled away all dusty.

"Something was here… this place is kept immaculate," he whispered.

Mario saw something out of the corner of his eye. Quickly moving to the side (he did not want a repeat of the tournament gone wrong, despite how nice meeting Pit up there was), he saw that it was something that was alive. He motioned Blumiere over, who floated across the floor to meet him.

Blumiere stopped as if he had slammed too hard on the brakes. Timpani noticed and made her way over, footsteps falling silently to avoid disturbing the atmosphere of the room. She too stopped in her tracks.

"Dad?" she whispered. The unconscious man did not respond. The movement Mario had seen was him slumping to the side.

"We need to get him somewhere safe…" Timpani trailed off, looking at the man who looked very similar to herself. She knew that she actually got most of her traits from her mother, but she looked a lot like her father when she was standing next to him.

Blumiere shook his head, tilting his top hat down. "The safest place is right here. Even the Tribe respects the hallowed ground, though I don't think they'll be able to say much at all."

"Why?" Bowser asked.

"A void was here… there's only one Prayer Cave, and Ariel doesn't lie. It's very possible the members who were here have traded places with your father, Timpani."

"So we pretty much have the two greatest opposers of our marriage gathered in one place? Lovely," Timpani remarked sarcastically. Blumiere shrugged helplessly.

"I guess it had to be done sometime," he suggested.

"Doesn't mean I have to be happy it's happening, much less _now_, of all times!"

"Um… y'all? I think he's wakin up…" Daisy interrupted.

The entire group watched as the man stirred, grimacing in pain before opening his eyes. His were blue, unlike Timpani's own. When they landed upon his daughter, you could clearly see the disbelief.

"Timpani?" he asked hesitantly, as if afraid of what would happen if he spoke to suddenly or too loudly.

Timpani nodded, conflict in her eyes. Her husband helped solve the issue, gently nudging her in the back with his elbow, giving an encouraging nod when she glanced at him. She walked forward to her father.

"You're alive! Oh, your mother will be ecstatic!" he exclaimed, hugging her tightly before putting her down just as soon as he picked her up. "Is your husband around? There's something I need to say to him… no, nothing bad, don't get that look in your eye," he reprimanded as Timpani opened her mouth to protest. He spotted Blumiere and calmly walked over. When he reached the Count, he bowed his head and then bowed to him before standing upright again.

"I can't say I'm sorry about what I said when I screamed that you'd only bring complications, because that's what happened. But I can say I'm sorry that I treated you as if you didn't have feelings… I'm sorry I was so harsh. I hope that you can find it in you to at least have half a decent thought about me." He did sound truly sorry. Years of pondering and debating "what ifs" can bring you some startling conclusions.

Blumiere smiled gently. "You were only looking out for your child. If I was in your position, I probably would've done the same."

"Papa, what inspired the change?" Timpani linked arms with her husband. The rest of the group remained silent and wandered a little bit away, thinking it was a family matter.

"Your mother, primarily. And a stranger she invited into our house… I could've sworn I just saw him… oh! He's over there!" Timpani's dad pointed at Link, who didn't even flinch, staring at something.

"On the list!" the guy in green responded to the unasked questions without looking up.

"He's a bit… odd," Timpani cut off her father before he could ask a question.

"Not a stranger to odd happenings," he replied, shrugging. "Where am I?"

"My home… the Necrealm. Sorry," Blumiere grimaced.

"Oh."

"Something about lifting a curse… I feel like this is a good place to try," Luigi started, trying to start up the conversation again.

"Uh… actually, you guys, that's it. The curse has been lifted. Storm's gone, too," Link said.

"What?"

"You guys didn't notice the big, giant, Twilight Dragon sized tornado inducing, Shadow Beast black clouds behind us?!"

"Obviously not if we're asking about them!" Bowser growled.

"Well, yeah, those were a thing. But _a parent's approval? Love is certainly renewable_? Any of this ringing a bell? And hey look, a parent, renewable love… sorry Top Hat, your dad's out of the race."

Blumiere muttered some analogy under his breath, probably insulting his father.

A Star plonked on the Count's head, falling from somewhere in the ceiling. A note was attached to it.

"From your sister, Ariel. We left it here for you to use," Timpani read as Blumiere rubbed his head.

Blumiere's father entered at this point, but froze in his tracks.

"Your sister did what?" he demanded quietly. Blumiere glared at him, fire in his eyes, but remained silent.

His father growled and turned around on a dime, startling everyone. Link was the first to recover.

"Where are you going?"

"I told that girl no more prophecies! She wasn't permitted to tell anyone, you see, as her prophecies are more often false than true," the Lord tried to explain.

Link didn't buy it. He waited until the Lord had turned his back, the whipped out his Clawshot, quick as a wink. Pressing the button, he pulled the Lord back by his cape before slamming him on the ground and landing on him with his elbow. He yanked the man back up and roundhouse kicked him into the mud nearby. Blumiere's father was out cold.

"Bullshit," Link stated, putting his equipment away. "Can I throw him again? That was fun… I see why Kirby enjoyed doing that."

"I got it." Blumiere's gem on his cane glowed, his father disappearing in a similar light. "Good riddance. I'll leave the recording here for the council when they show up again." Blumiere detached the crystal, laying it on a shelf conspicuously. He produced an identical gem from his cape and attached it.

Everyone but Timpani stared. Blumiere sighed.

"These gems are just for show. They're like scopes, more for sighting than an actually purpose on my cane. But they have a legitimate use, which is why I carry them around: they can be used as a recording device. They're made by magic, so everyone's looks different, so the council will know who it's from without me leaving a note for them. It will also explain why he's currently sitting in an occupied jail cell."

Timpani's father blinked, but said nothing. The rest of the group just nodded in acceptance; Blumiere usually knew what he was doing when it came to magic.

"So… what now?" Daisy asked, handing the Star to Peach, who put it in her bag.

"Now we leave." Blumiere exited the cave, stopping by one of the rainbow crystals and gazing at it for a few seconds before continuing on, not waiting for anyone.

Timpani's father interrupted the silence. "Why does he have a cake pin in his hat?"

Timpani sighed, smiling without it reaching her eyes. "Inside joke." The gang then left, following their disturbed magician through his lair.

**A/N: … Can you tell that I expected it to be a lot more dramatic? It was, originally… there was gonna be a musical scene where everyone's dancing and singing and the storm's in the background and Link is a badass and saves the day…**

**But the story didn't want to go that way. And sometimes you just gotta respect that and let it happen. I still put in badass Link though. Because his throws in Smash 4 are absolutely hilarious. Seriously, the only reason I have that game is because I loved the humor bits.**

**Well, Timpani's dad is here along with Blumiere's. Can you tell that I didn't and still don't have names for them? Eh, they won't be here long…**

**I apologize for the crap writing at the end. I'm not that great at ending these things.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except my own ideas.**


	13. Chapter 13

"Not to insult your knowledge… but where are we even going?" Bowser groused at Blumiere.

"I'm going to say good-bye to Ariel… I didn't have the chance last time," Blumiere informed sadly. His brisk pace had slowed, allowing the group to catch up with him.

Timpani kissed him on the cheek in comfort. "Better late than never, Cake."

The eerie quietness suited the realm's scheme. Blumiere seemed unsettled; possibly because he remembered it in a different way.

They all finally reached Blumiere and Ariel's house. The Count knocked once more, but there was no reply. The Count narrowed his eyes and quickly but silently opened the front door, running through the entrance without shutting the door behind him. No footsteps sounded, making him impossible to track.

Timpani gathered the group. "This way!" she whisper-shouted, beginning to run the direction Blumiere had run himself. Their footsteps echoed over the spotless mansion, reminding Luigi of the false one he had met Professor E. Gad in. He shook away the memories, focusing on not running past Timpani so he wouldn't get lost.

Timpani slid around a corner with remarkable precision, her father surprisingly following suit. The Kingdom gang had some more difficultly, but somehow managed to not trip over their own feet or each other.

A flung open door showed where Blumiere was. The magician was desperately running around the room, muttering under his breath. Objects were grabbed then tossed on a table as he passed it to go get more… what appeared to be ingredients.

The reason for the mad dash was painstakingly clear: Ariel lied in a pool of blood that stained her green clothes an awful, murky brown.

Peach and Timpani ran to her, but Blumiere shouted "Stop! She has too much magical energy; you'll get hurt as well!"

Timpani and Peach, having no protection against magic, stopped in their tracks.

Timpani's father, however, had no such reservations. He ignored Blumiere's shouting and touched her forehead.

"She's searing hot," he informed, all business. He was remarkably calmer than Blumiere, which was probably a good thing. "I don't know much about your species, but I can almost guarantee that she's not supposed to be this warm."

"Pretty much the same as humans, we just have some different DNA codes," Blumiere explained as he gathered what were the last ingredients.

Timpani's father slowly turned Ariel to her other side, revealing the wound.

The Kingdoms gain had to turn away due to the gruesomeness of it all. Even Link with his war experience under his belt couldn't gaze at it.

"It looks like a broadsword that was… heated?" Timpani's dad removed some of her clothing from the around the wound, leaving her decent but still allowing access to the injury.

"Magically," Blumiere tacked on, quickly crushing ingredients.

Timpani went to help him. "Water," he said, and Timpani went to grab it. It took a few more minutes, but Blumiere finished the paste. He muttered something under his breath, moving his hand over the bowl in a slow circle. The contents glittered and glowed for a moment before fading. Blumiere picked up the bowl and ran over to where his sister lay.

"Hold her steady; this stuff stings and she will react accordingly," Blumiere warned. Timpani's father nodded and gently but firmly took a hold of Ariel's arms.

Blumiere picked up a handful of the stuff, slopping it on his sister. Her eyes opened, unseeing, and she screamed. Her arms twitched, but the man held her steady.

Blumiere started humming something strangely familiar. Timpani placed her hand on his shoulder and joined in the song.

The Kingdom gang recognized it as the song the two had sung earlier about how they met. The potion glittered and glowed once more, and Ariel stopped thrashing. Blumiere removed the pile of now-dried goop and tossed it, putting the bowl in a nearby sink.

"Thank you, sir," the Count said as he tossed his soiled gloves into a nearby trash can and replacing them with a spare pair.

"Just Paul is fine," the man smiled. "You are, by law, family now, it seems."

Blumiere blushed and refocused on his sister. "She should be okay to touch now. Which reminds me, how were you able to touch her and not get injured?"

Paul tapped a flower on his lapel. It was the exactly like the ones Timpani grew in the reformed window box at their house.

"These flowers are special, as you know. But what is very seldom known is that they protect anyone from magic of any kind, but only certain amounts. If it's too much, they'll wither and die. This one will probably be dead by tomorrow."

Blumiere nodded, picking his sister up and leading the group to another area of the house.

"Will she be okay?" Link was the first to pipe up.

"Should be," Blumiere informed, "that was the point of the healing business. Usually it takes a lot longer… I just got lucky with the age of some of the ingredients. The aging thing is why I don't normally do the healing spell, before you ask. There's probably a simpler version, but I've never been able to find one. To be fair, I wasn't exactly looking for one."

"Is it just me, or are the quiet ones talking more?" Bowser commented.

Blumiere and Link weren't amused. "Well, let's see, the worlds are ending, I have info, and you guys need info. Would you prefer I talked less?" Link groused.

"Peace, you two," Paul shushed, "don't start."

They had reached whatever destination Blumiere had in mind. Timpani opened the door for her husband, allowing him into a purple and brown room that seemed to be a bedroom. The rest of the group stayed outside the door and waited. Timpani nodded her head and closed the door, allowing the small family some time to say good-bye.

"What kind of sicko would do that?" Daisy ground out.

"One who cares very little of anyone's well being except their own," Paul stated darkly.

Link grunted in agreement. The rest of the group stayed silent, mulling over the events.

Meanwhile, Blumiere and Timpani bustled around in Ariel's room. Blumiere picked out a new outfit for his sister, and Timpani went to change the girl's clothing. When she was decent, Blumiere aided his wife in putting his sister down on her bed. They sat on the end for a bit, not knowing what to say.

"I'm sorry," Blumiere started. "I'm so sorry for a great many things… for leaving, not saying good-bye, leaving you here with him, not being here for you today… I can say I'm sorry but it can't mean anything to me… not yet. I hope, Ariel, that one day you'll realize what I've done is wrong but will still have it in yourself to spare a decent thought for your brother now and then."

Ariel twitched. "Brother… love you… unconditionally…" the words are not as clear as they appear here, but both Blumiere and Timpani could hear them.

"And we you." Timpani kissed her sister-in-law on the forehead, followed by Blumiere.

"And by the time this is over, he should be gone…" The couple got up.

"Good-bye, Ariel. We shall see each other again, soon enough." Blumiere tipped his hat and walked out the door, leaving behind Ariel's ruined clothing on top of her dresser along with the gem he had placed on his cane earlier.

The group turned as they heard the door open. The couple walked out, looking tired but satisfied.

The Count turned to Link. "Where to next?"

"The… Flower Kingdom," Link recalled.

"We end where we begin?" Daisy suggested, "after all, I think we've only got about two Stars left!"

"But how the heck are we supposed to get back there? It's not like we have an actual, reliable source of-"

Timpani withdrew the candy-cane plumbing from a pocket in her tunic, raising an eyebrow at Bowser.

"You were saying?" she asked rhetorically before throwing the pipe on the ground and jumping into the now full-sized reliable mode of transportation.

Everyone else just shrugged and followed suit, the pipe disappearing after Link went through it. There was no evidence they were ever there except for the gloves in the trash can and the gem on the dresser.

"Welcome, heroes!" Merlon greeted as the group exited the pipe, Mario giving the shrunken form back to Timpani.

"Hello, Merlon. Anything new to report?" she asked.

Merlon's usually happy face went grim. "Unfortunately. Time here is beginning to fluxate… if you run into past versions of yourselves, do not panic."

Everyone but Blumiere and Link nodded.

"Rosalina and I have also confirmed that you are on a much tighter time limit than previously suspected… you only have about a week until this universe ceases to exist."

"And then that's it. Game over, no lives left," Link tacked on, catching Merlon's attention.

"I don't believe I've met you before." He turned to Paul. "Or you."

"Long story short, Beardo, I'm the guy in green that's meant to help them. You might want to tell them this next prophecy, there. Pleasantries later."

Merlon cleared his throat. "Of course. I wish it weren't true, but wishing only does so much unless it's upon NOVA. Anyway,

_This is it, the final stretch_

_Into stone you will have to etch_

_To find the last two items of which you seek_

_But be careful not to peek._

_This is our last warning, from us to you:_

_There is one, but also too._

_Beware, beware, the mirror that doesn't shine_

_Help awaits at the Armageddon Shrine._"

"I think that's the most sense the ancients have made in… forever," Blumiere commented, met by several agreements.

Luigi turned to Daisy. "Do you know what to do?"

Daisy smirked. "You betcha! Let's go! Thanks, wizard guy!" She grabbed Luigi's hand and started running off, followed by the rest of the group who called various good-byes and thanks to the helpful wizard.

**A/N: Quick thing here about me and the gloves: no way in hell are they ever going to be perfectly immaculate on anyone ever. Blumiere is the most obvious case, as it is mentioned several times that he tosses his gloves and has a lot of spares lying around. The Mario Bros. and the Princesses do the same thing, it's just not mentioned because we don't really focus on them.**

**By the way, they're not thrown into landfills. By some process or another, sanitation workers are able to clean and salvage the gloves that are then donated to charities. That's why so many people in the universe have gloves: they're easy to get a hold of.**

**As for Ariel… every fic I've read has always mentioned Blumiere as being an only child with maybe a few friends. In my version, I like for him to have a sibling. So there. **

**As for Paul… Timpani stated several times in the game that pretty much everything was against them getting married. Attempting to tie in my previous two-shot, it was only her father that vehemently opposed it. Her mother was actually quite supportive, happy her daughter found someone who wouldn't hold her back and cared for her genuinely. Paul was originally going to be unsupportive until the previously mentioned epic scene where Link shouts at him and reminds him: "She's your **_**daughter, **_**you empty jar! Shouldn't you be happy that she is?" And then startling realization, blah, blah, blah. But I like the idea that he's had years to mull it over, believing his child to be deceased because he didn't allow her to come back to a safe haven. Plus with his wife and an utter stranger who seem to view something in the same way… well, it gets you thinking. Blumiere forgives easily (he's not exactly a saint himself), and he helped with Ariel in a dire moment, no questions asked. Are they going to be buddy-buddy? Hell no; awkward "you-hated-me-but-now-you-don't-and-I've-sort-of-been-related-to-you-for-years-but-we-don't-know-each-other-that-well" moments are hopefully coming your way! Also, the name was decided by one of my friends. So shout-out to him for a answering a random Skype question.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing! Well, except my ideas.**

**So, where do we stand now, oh count of mine?**

**(Current Length: 70 pages and about 25,980 words in MS word.)**


	14. Chapter 14

"Well… we certainly are back where we started…"

The two castles in the kingdoms were mirrors of each other. Funnily enough, they had landed in the Flower Kingdom's parallel of the room they had Peach's party in.

"C'mon," Daisy said, "I know where we need to go. Time's a-wastin!" She dashed out of the room, shortly followed by the others.

The Flower Princess lead them all through a maze of corridors, somehow not getting lost and being able to turn on dimes, even in her kitten heels.

"You've… gotta have some… respect for that," Timpani huffed as she and Blumiere tried to keep up. He just wiggled his eyebrows in reply.

Daisy stopped in front of a large set of double doors. Luigi stepped forward and helped her push one open enough for everyone to get through.

The four guards nodded their heads, greeting their princess and her compatriots and allowing them to pass.

"Why are they inside?" Paul asked.

"It's not expected," Daisy replied. "Everyone expects the treasury to have guards outside of the doors, never inside them. So we can catch thieves by surprise. I can't count how many times someone has tried to rob me."

"Aren't they usually sent by politicians?" Blumiere mused.

Daisy gazed at him questioningly. He shrugged. "Meditating for my magic usually ends up with me in an emotion flow. You've got some very upset people in your court and in your jailhouse."

Daisy shrugged, apathetic. "Then they should learn to do their deals honestly. But enough of politics."

Daisy went and chatted with a guard for a few moments. He handed her a small object and pointed somewhere in the large, expansive hall.

The whole group followed Daisy, who moved with a purpose. When she reached the indicated area- a blank space of wall with nothing peculiar about it- she raised the chisel and hammer and began etching something into the wall in the written language of the Flower Kingdom.

"Ah hah hah hah hah!" Dimentio appeared behind Daisy, but the princess was in no mood for games. She took something out of her pocket that was somewhere on her dress and tossed it at the jester.

Seeing a flash of blue, all the ones who had been in the karting races tackled those who hadn't.

A large _boom_ echoed through the hall. When Dimentio recovered from the attack via Spiney, he found himself surrounded by Flower Kingdom Royal guards, some slightly ticked people from the Mushroom Kingdom, and three _very pissed_ people.

Luigi tossed a bomb Link had handed to him at the jester, while Timpani shot at him and Blumiere threw water he had withdrawn from the air at his former minion.

"Ciao!" The jester teleported away, all the attacks missing.

"Good riddance," Luigi muttered.

Daisy kept at her task this whole time, finishing whatever it is she needed to carve. If we could read the language, it would say this: _Don't peek._

Some sort of magic activated on the wall. It slid somewhere, but the lack of seams made it impossible to track.

Daisy withdrew a box and opened it to reveal two Power Stars with a note.

_We didn't know when, and we don't know how, but we know you'll need these soon._

_Have Luigi read the back of this. Don't peek; it's from us to him only. _

_Love you,_

_Mom and Dad._

Daisy kissed the paper, small tears gathering in her eyes. "Thank you," she mouthed before doing as the note instructed. Luigi tucked it into his pocket, planning to read it later.

She handed one Star to Peach and kept the other to herself. Paul questioned her actions.

Bowser rolled his eyes, but not at the question. "Do you know how many times these guys have been separated or captured in their adventures? If only one person had all the Stars, they'd be screwed!"

Paul had to tip his head at that logic. As they were walking out of the castle, Link spoke up.

"Well, that was anti-climatic."

A void appeared underneath them, sucking them in and causing startled exclamations from them all.

"Aw, you didn't think that I'd be swept away like ants in molasses, did you?" the demented jester appeared where the group once stood. "Ah hah hah hah hah! This will be a good fight!" And with that, he disappeared once more.

**A/N: Well, they needed to get to the final boss somehow! And Dimentio's batshit enough to take them straight there.**

**By the way, in the last chapter, it's not a typo. I know what I typed. Just keep in mind that the group is hearing it **_**phonetically**_**, and are processing it as the word "two". You're actually one step ahead of them because of that.**

**So… it appears this is coming to a close… wow. I thought it'd be longer! But it doesn't really make much of a difference to you guys, as you're getting this all at once. This fic has actually taken a few months to write (my bad, I get… distracted easily), and it's gonna be kind of sad to see it go.**

**And then I'll find a really long complete fic that my friends take one glance at and ask me why the hell I'm reading novels.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

**(Current Length: About 73 pages and 26,963 words in MS Word.)**


	15. Chapter 15

"Bleck," Blumiere grumbled as he picked himself up, checking on his comrades.

Only to find himself alone.

The magician rolled his eyes. Sure, Dimentio may be downright crazy, but stupid is something he wasn't. At least, most of the time. Blumiere brushed off whatever dust may have taken lodging on his clothing as he looked around, taking in his surroundings.

To put it simply, it was his old castle on acid. Same basic layout, but some of the tunnels were twisted and the whole placed glowed like a neon sign. His eyes turned blue due to the amount of light, he knew.

Having long since memorized his own castle, he walked forward towards the far end of the castle. Chances are that this realm had also been resurrected with the others that had been destroyed with the voids. Dimentio probably redesigned it to his own tastes…

That much was clear when he entered a hallway filled with mirrors.

Blumiere rolled his eyes again but put up his guard. _Does he think I forgot? Or is he just playing mind games?_

The Count sighed and walked forward.

"Blumiere?" he heard Timpani's voice from beside him. Turning, it appeared as if she were trapped behind a mirror. Something was off and Blumiere noticed right away, but left no hints to him knowing.

"Timpani? Where are the others?"

"I… I don't know."

Blumiere had to admit, it was a good copy, accurate in most of the details of his wife.

Most.

"Can you get me out? That stupid jester locked me behind here. I think it'll work if you just break the glass."

Blumiere nodded, lifting his cane as if preparing to use magic.

He then turned and fired a spread shot at the Dimentio clones that moved to attack him from behind. He then placed a barrier over the mirror frame that lacked a mirror.

"I hope Timpani knows what they meant," he muttered to himself, making his way towards the altar he and Timpani had renewed their vows at as they used the Pure Hearts to calm the Chaos Heart.

He whistled as he walked, ignoring the taunting voices in the back of his head that he wasn't who he made everyone think he was.

Meanwhile, our other heroes hadn't been split up apart from Blumiere.

Timpani got frustrated and kicked a pillar that held a pot. The jar fell and shattered, leaving behind… a very Valentine-looking pink heart. Link got really excited.

"Oh heck yes, a recovery heart!" He picked it up and it dissolved into smaller hearts that disappeared into Link himself.

"So it's like a heal block?" Mario gestured at his universe's equivalent.

"Erm… more like the food you guys eat. That's more like a Heart Container." Link rubbed the back of his head.

Meanwhile, the two outsider family members looked at each other and shrugged. It felt a bit awkward, Timpani noticed, getting along wither father after these long years, but it was a natural rhythm she felt they'd settle into soon.

"So… do we look for Top Hat or…" Link started up the conversation again.

"Blumiere will be fine; he and I know where to go. Follow me." Timpani took the lead this time. She may have been distracted when she first came here in her Pixl form, but she remembers the path Mario took immaculately, and this area looked awfully familiar.

Paul watched as his daughter marched forward, the whole group in tow. Bowser hung back with him due to his slower speed.

"They grow up fast, don't they?" the king commented without preamble.

"What?"

"Kids." Bowser gestured at Timpani. "Heck, she's almost as motherly as Peach when she wants to be. And that's saying something."

Paul tilted his head and Bowser sighed. "Let me put it this way; my own kid started calling Peach 'mama' about a year after he met her."

"Is she? His mother, I mean."

Bowser laughed. "No way. She's got a thing with Mario, I think. Those two have never gone official but it seems to suit them; same with Daisy and Luigi. I had my own partner a few years ago who's Junior's real mom… but she passed away quite a few years back."

"I'm sorry."

Bowser shrugged. "They're gone and I can't do much about it. I just remember the happier times. And Junior, of course. It's what they'd want me to."

Paul nodded, pondering.

Perhaps a bit more than apologies were in order.

Blumiere sighed. That was the _fifth time_ the Dimentio clones had attacked him. He was beginning to get a bit bored.

It didn't last long.

He dodged a Curseya, cursing himself for actually letting those things into his castle in the first place. Then again, it's not like he could help it. They were attracted to dimensional disorder, so these ones might've come a short time ago.

He looked down the hallway and saw that it was nearly swarmed in the creatures. The magician sighed and set up a barrier around himself. The creatures couldn't help that their abilities were activated by touch.

As he forged through, he focused on those voices, wanting to get them out of his head.

_You're not who you say, _ the first voice sounded like Paul's.

_A Count is true, but Blumiere isn't you. It's __**Bleck **__who holds the deck!_ The sing-song voice reminded the Count of Dimentio.

He sighed at the feeble mind games. If Dimentio had bothered trying before the Carnival of Time, or even before Yoshi's Island, he might've been convinced. But the demented jester hadn't, and so he spoke with authority in his mental voice.

_I am not who I claim to be? What about you, Dimentio, with your mind games, parading as these voices inside my own head? I am who I claim to be; I am Blumiere, Count of my family, spouse of Timpani the Flower Girl, proud resident of the Flower Kingdom, and one of few magicians left in my own realm. That is who I am. Count Bleck was who I was, formed out of heartbreak and grief and suffering. Let it be perfectly clear that if you so much as think about touching any of them, the next sunrise will not be pleasant for you._

_Ooh, to the death, then?_

_No, to a pain._

…_What?_

Blumiere sent the mental impression of a smirk, but said nothing else before delicately kicking Dimentio out of his head, granting him peace and quiet again. He saw that he had made it through the Curseyas and entered the door at the end, leading to he and his minion's chamber. The large, ornate door he had summoned right before the first destruction of worlds was still there. He opened it a bit, peeked inside, and then slid through the crack, leaving no evidence he was there at all.

Nearby, the larger group was having far less difficulty. Mario and Luigi felt no such reservations against the creatures, finding them annoying to get around with their large group. The brothers had since taken out their hammers and were pelting them to the sides.

Link had attempted to help, but found that all of items that could would probably also bring the building down, so he just shield bashed any of the ones who got through the brother's barricade to the side, away from everyone else.

They made it through the Curseyas without incident and entered the room.

No one was there, but they did see the familiar door. Silently, they all crept up and entered it, closing it behind them.

Dimentio teleported into the room, but did not find anything strange about it, so here he waited for the heroes to come fight him.

If he went out, he decided, unlikely though it was, he'd at least go with a bang.

Inside the room, Blumiere and Timpani hugged at their reunion, but nothing more. There was something they all had to do.

"Remember the prophecy? _The Armageddon Shrine…_" Timpani stated, looks of realization coming over everyone's faces.

Link sighed. "I'm gonna tell you now you guys: I leave in a few minutes. Or so you've said… will say? Eh, whatever. But the aid that was mentioned is up there at the altar." Link gestured.

"Well then, let's go," Mario said, leading the way up the stairs.

They all stood around the altar, which started humming.

"Oh! Peach and Daisy, you two together. Top Hat, you and your wife! Mario Bros, you two, and Bowser and Paul, over here! There!" Link arranged the rest of the group in a somewhat circle around it with each of the pair touching one another with one touching the altar.

Words projected themselves for the whole group to see.

_Four different loves are joined here together_

_The lovers, the friends, the sisters and brothers._

_One alone was enough to overcome,_

_Four is enough to revive and then some!_

The words disappeared, a blinding light surrounding them all.

"Bye guys! See you next tournament!" Link shouted as he faded away, bringing the ocarina to his lips and playing.

When the group opened their eyes, in Link's place they saw the eight Pure Hearts they had worked so hard to collect last time.

_Help shall be here soon…_

And so it was. The Light Prognosticus replica reacted of its own accord, forcing itself out of Peach's bag and onto the altar, opening as it did so.

"Heroes!" Merlon greeted, Rosalina and Chief Rain-shi and the unnamed white Yoshi beside him. "You have your Stars?"

Everyone nodded and whoever held a Star pulled it out.

"Lumas! Now!" Rosalina commended.

Hundreds of Stars started dropping, their powers mixing with the Pure Hearts'.

"Get rid of the Void!" Rosalina said before the connection cut off.

"You head Star Girl! Move, move, move!" Daisy commanded. Everyone joined together, focusing on the Pure Hearts, their love and care for their friends, new and old, their countries, their homes, and their love of life powering the Hearts. Another blinding light shone through the altar, forcing the heroes to close their eyes again.

As soon as it started, it faded. The group watched as the Pure Hearts sunk back into the altar, a feeling of protection emerging from the pedestal in which they resided. The Powers Stars shot back off, probably towards the Comet Observatory.

Blumiere heard a whisper in his mind.

_We have granted him peace. Or perhaps it was you. Either way, it works out._ Eight different tones resounded and he knew what the Pure Hearts had done.

Mario opened the book, please to see that everyone was there still.

"Everyone alright? Are the universes returning to normal?" he asked.

A very tired Rosalina gave him one of her small smiles. "Yes," she said airily, "your friends will come back soon. Time and space are normal again… for the most part. You must complete a paradox, after all. But that is for another time."

They all nodded.

"That was… anticlimactic. I'm not complaining," Bowser stated.

"Don't we have to deal with that demented jester?" Peach asked.

Blumiere shook his head. "The Pure Hearts already did. I know not how, but… they had ample amounts of energy to do as they wished." He shrugged.

"So… home?" Bowser asked.

Everyone muttered consents except Paul.

"Timpani… Blumiere… would you mind if we went to see your mother?" he asked timidly.

The couple looked at each other. "I have a better idea. Why don't you two come to our house? That way, we can all introduce ourselves to one another. It'll be a lot easier that way, too."

Paul bowed his head. "I would be honored… but I… uh… kind of need to know where you live, first."

Everyone laughed. "We'll take care of that," Timpani assured, taking out the candy-cane plumbing. "Now, who's ready to go home?"

**A/N: Sorry, no epic final boss for you all… I kind of like that actually. I mean, seriously, the brothers collected hundreds if not thousands of Stars in their adventures. Why can't they reuse them? It's fairly obvious they aren't a one-time deal. And since they have so many, it would make sense that the Pure Hearts have basically free reign over whatever they want to do.**

**Also, I suck at writing boss battles, can't you tell? And if you really want to get technical, Blumiere defeated him inside his head, so… yeah.**

**This story isn't over yet. This last scene and the repeated mentions of Smash Bros. need to be tied up to, and shall be within the next chapter, or maybe two, depending.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own ideas!**

**(Current Length: about 79 pages and about 29,084 words in MS Word.)**


	16. Chapter 16

"Wow," Paul said as he entered Blumiere and Timpani's home. "This place is amazing!"

Blumiere chuckled. "We're on the same page, then."

"Rest for a day, dad, before inviting mom. The guest room is to your right with an adjoining bathroom. The kitchen is two doors down. Help yourself to something in the fridge. Instructions for the appliances are on the fridge. And dad?

"Yes?"

"Read them, please. This crowd is really advanced. Blumiere and I will be upstairs if you need something."

She kissed him on the cheek before doing as she said, her husband following.

Paul yawned. Maybe he wasn't there for the entire adventure, but the part he was in attendance for was exhausting. He shut the door and flopped on the mattress, not even bothering with blankets in the warm atmosphere.

Before he fell asleep, however, he thought about what had just transpired.

He and his wife had been sitting at their kitchen table at their own home, staring at the flames on the candles they had lit. Several rainbow blooms danced in the slight breeze in the middle of the candle circle. Both he and his wife were humming the same thing: a funeral song that indicated celebrating life. As such, it was a bit more upbeat than the usual dirge.

When they were done, they blew out and replaced the candles. They said not a word, but Paul waved good-bye to his wife as he left through the front door. She went back to add improvement to Timpani's old robotic arm, like how she's done ever since her daughter was lost.

Paul looked at the clouds, having a small amount of resentment for the blue sky. His daughter is dead, dammit! The sky itself should mourn for her loss.

Well, he got his wish. Right in front of him was a purple portal that blocked out the sky. But it sucked him in as well, throwing him into a very unfamiliar cave. His head smacked against a rock formation, knocking him out cold.

And we know the story from here, so I'm not going to repeat it. Just know the Paul was in absolute shock for awhile. His daughter wasn't dead; she was safe (relatively), healthy (relatively), and, most importantly, _alive. _And his son-in-law was with her. After what happened, he couldn't hold it in himself to despise the Tribe member or even dislike him. As long as Timpani was happy, so was he.

He smiled as he closed his eyes. Maybe, just maybe, he had learned something his wife tried to teach him.

Meanwhile, the couple had just plonked on their bead after removing unnecessary clothing items; namely Blumiere's hat, monocle, cape, suit coat and dress shirt and Timpani's butterfly pin that held her hair up. They put each itmein their respective place before cuddling together in their shared bed and falling sleep shortly after.

Tomorrow was certainly going to be interesting.

The residents of the house got up late the next morning. They gathered in the kitchen, not sure of what to say to one another. Shrugging, Blumiere began to gather ingredients for French Toast that Timpani started making. They worked as a team, quickly getting the food on the table for all of them and storing away quite a bit extra.

"The others come over often times, though usually not all at once. We always make sure to have something for them, as it's usually after an adventure of theirs," Timpani explained in between bites.

"Lord Bowser also brings the kids he babysits a lot, so we make sure to have food for all of them," Blumiere added.

"And if they don't, well, we've got dinner tonight or breakfast tomorrow," Timpani shrugged.

Paul nodded at the logic, digging into his toast once more.

"Thank you," he said after he was finished, "I can do the dishes."

Blumiere held Timpani's shoulder, nodding at his wife.

Paul turned away, heading off to do his chore while the two held a silent conversation. As he started, he noticed as Blumiere stood next to him, towel in hand. The magician dried and put away the dishes as Paul washed them.

"Don't you have a spell to do that?"

Blumiere shrugged. "Yes. But I enjoy the feel of doing it by hand. Why expend effort on something that costs very little? Unless you wanted to make something special."

Paul tilted his head. It made sense. The two worked in silence, but it wasn't exactly comfortable. Paul was half tempted to ask about the local sports team, but he felt that wouldn't go over quite as well as he could hope.

"So what do you two do around here?" he asked instead.

"What?"

"I don't believe for one second that all you two do around here is just sit and wait for something to come along. Maybe on some days, yes, but not all the time. So what do you do?"

"We help Daisy a lot of the time," Blumiere started, "Some of the politicians are brutal with her for the simple fact she's young and female. Timpani is the blunt force; she addresses the hypocrisy the politicians put forth and questions their motives. They try to throw dirt at her, but perks of being from another realm means they can't find her background. You may be dragged into this, now that I think about it. Sorry."

Paul shrugged. "Politicians. You can't really do much about them."

"Not the conservative ones, no. I help Daisy with wording and some speeches… you have to watch what you say in magic and in the Tribe in general, else you could be taken a completely different way than what you mean. After I helped Daisy with a few sentences, she hired me as a ghost writer, of sorts. She tells me what she wants to say and what it means and I phrase it for her. They can't really argue against it when her words are clearly stated."

"I bet they liked that."

"They enjoy it even more when Timpani rats out their little spies. You can't hide anything from her, even if you wanted to."

Paul laughed. "Ah, she's always been able to do that. I remember telling her things she really didn't need to know."

Blumiere chuckled. "Or perhaps they were, and we just didn't realize it at the time."

Paul smiled. It seemed as if his son-in-law was comfortable with him to an extent.

Paul handed the last dish to Blumiere, who put it away.

"Come," he said, walking out of the room, "Timpani's in the common room."

He followed the purple-skinned humanoid into the aforementioned area, finding his daughter and the two Mario Brothers there as well.

"These two know the world far better than I. They agreed to help you find mom and bring her here," Timpani explained.

Paul moved to ask how he was supposed to get her there when Blumiere placed the cake decoration and the crystal Luigi had given them into his hand.

"She'll know," was all the magician said on the matter.

Paul and the two brothers nodded, brushing off the thanks that the couple gave them, citing that they were happy to help a friend and that this journey wasn't that brutal.

It was true; the worst injuries the crew had taken were the rat's tail and Timpani's incident with the giant Boo.

While Paul and the brothers headed off (with the conversation "Where do you live?" "A place called Rainbow Road; did you ever hear of it?" ending with nearly inaudible, simultaneous groans), Blumiere and Timpani stayed in the common room. The latter removed a tool set from the bookcase and sat down at a desk, working on her mecha arm. Blumiere sat nearby, reading the book he had started before the adventure he didn't have time to finish.

It wasn't long before the brother came back with two people in tow. One was, quite obviously, Paul. But the second was unfamiliar but unmistakable. She had many of the same features as Timpani, with the dark skin, dark eyes, and dark hair. The way she carried herself as well, and from what the brothers had experienced, some of her mannerisms were also shared traits. This was Timpani's mom, no doubt about it. She held the two objects Blumiere had given Paul in her hand.

The two brothers knocked on the door, but took their leave as soon as Timpani opened it.

"Peach is going into 'you-just-finished-an-adventure-now_-sleep-_' mode," Luigi explained, chuckling. "We'll see you all later." The two waved and headed towards Daisy's castle, where they would then proceed home via pipeline.

Timpani's mom, meanwhile, stood at the door in shock. Tears gathered and fell from her eyes.

"Timpani…?" she asked, much like her husband did when he first saw his daughter.

Timpani nodded. "Yes," she whispered.

Her mother ran forward, engulfing her in a hug. Timpani felt the tears on her shirt from her mother and felt her own streaming down her face.

Timpani's mother pulled back. "My daughter… oh, my daughter… you're alive!" she laughed.

Blumiere stood at the door. "Come inside… I'll make cocoa."

They did as such, Blumiere heading towards the kitchen to make good on his promise of hot chocolate.

"How?" Timpani's mother finally managed to ask.

"Well, after Lord Nutjob launched me over the cliff- no offense Blumiere…"

"None taken, that's an understatement."

"Anyway, after that, I wasn't quite dead. I would've been, if a wizard named Merlon hadn't found me. Apparently Lord Jerk had kicked me into another realm _literally._ Merlon turned me into a Pixl, and for awhile, I was known as 'Tippi', the only part of my name I could remember. All I could remember, actually. I remembered how to build robots, my own morals, and the like, but any personal questions and all I'd get was a blank. So I helped Merlon for awhile…"

"Until I did something foolish that I regret to this day," Blumiere spoke, filling in where Timpani left off. "I invoked the Dark Prognosticus after finding out that Timpani was dead. I nearly ended all the worlds, if it wasn't for Timpani and the others. You just met two of them, actually; the Mario Bros."

"The two others at the time were Princess Peach and Lord Bowser. I helped them, gaining my memories back as we journeyed on. We finally made it to Count Bleck's castle after finding all the Pure Hearts."

Blumiere tilted his hat over his eyes. "Bleck, how foolish I was…"

Timpani grabbed his hand but continued the story. "We confronted Count Bleck and showed him the error of his ways… and he became Blumiere again. But one of his minions, Dimentio, was the real enemy. He brainwashed Luigi, took a giant robot, and combined it with his powers. Mario said he, Peach, and Bowser had a difficult time fighting it. Blumiere, a girl named Nastasia and I were all sealed in Dimension D, an area of Dimentio's own creation. Two loyal minions, O'Chuncks and Mimi, came and helped me encourage Blumiere. The Pure Hearts appeared again and I took them to Mario to help him and the others. With them, they were able to defeat Dimentio. But not quite."

"Dimentio had left a shadow of his power to control the Chaos Heart, and it was going to finish what I had started."

"But it didn't. Blumiere and I took the PureHearts up to the Armageddon Altar and basically renewed our vows, calming the Chaos Heart. But the thing is, the Pure Hearts granted our wish as well. Blumiere was partially healed…"

"And Timpani's human form was restored. We were also sent to a world where we could be happy together…"

"Right here. Well, more specifically, a beach northwest of here, and about five feet above the ground to boot. We spent a time there, waiting for Blumiere to recover fully and me to get used to being human again before seeking out an authority figure. The only one here is Princess Daisy."

"As it turns out, she and Luigi have a sort of… arrangement. The point is, they very frequently exchange letters, and hers happened to address us by name."

"The heroes all recognized them and hurried over. Daisy knew who we were and arranged for us to meet them as a surprise. We did and told them what we told you now. A few months later, it's Peach's birthday…"

The couple went on to regale the adventure, Paul adding in where he was present in the adventure.

"You two… have gone through so much." Timpani's mother hugged them both. "I'm sorry for that pain."

"It's alright, madam," Blumiere reassured.

"If you can call him Paul, you can call me Viola," she informed him, "I am, after all, your mother-in-law."

"Of course. Would you like something to eat? We've got plenty," he offered.

"No thank you. I just want to enjoy my children's company for awhile," Viola smiled.

Timpani and Blumiere blushed a bit, inspiring chuckles from the parents.

And so Viola's wish was fulfilled: spending time with her kids who were presumed dead but were actually, gloriously, _alive_.

**A/N: Oh come on, you really think I'm gonna leave Timpani's mom out? Hell no!**

**Anyway, Viola's name is inspired by one of my previously mentioned friends. He plays the viola so… yeah. Plus it fits in with Timpani's music-themed name. (Ever hear of a timpani drum?)**

**One more chapter you guys. I'm going to cry.**

_**This chapter is in honor of Monty Oum. This man is the one who set me on my future career path, the only one I can recall being solid. He passed away a few days ago at age 33. I promise, Monty, to keep moving forward in all my projects. I hope you're smiling, wherever you may be.**_

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except my own ideas.**

**(Current Length: just over 84 pages and about 32,416 words in MS Word.)**


	17. Chapter 17

About a month later, most everything from the adventure they had gone on had settled down. Everyone was able to remain at their own homes for the entirety of that month, which was surprising but not unwelcome.

Timpani was fetching the mail while Blumiere meditated. She saw a strange envelope, simply addressed to herself and Blumiere. The only other distinguishing mark was an odd circle with an off-center cross through it. It shined iridescently as she shifted it in the light.

She tossed the rest of the mail (mostly spam) on the table in the hall before entering a side room. The room had been a spare, probably designed for storage. Blumiere had converted it to a room where he could meditate or practice his magic without endangering anyone that was inside or outside the house.

Timpani knocked on the door, waiting for her husband's okay to enter.

"This is weird," she said, handing the letter to Blumiere as soon as he opened the door. "I don't recognize the symbol, but the handwriting looks vaguely familiar…"

Blumiere scanned the letters for a few minutes before making a noise of recognition. "It's Link's. From that note?"

"Oh yeah!" Timpani recalled. "But how was he able to get a letter here?"

Blumiere opened the letter neatly with a spell. "I have a feeling we'll find out."

Sitting on the futon together, they read the sheet of paper.

_Top Hat and Timpani,_

_Apparently Master Hand is a stickler about nicknames. Who knew? Anyway, I know the Mario Bros. and the rest of the crew promised an explanation about the constant references to Subspace. Well, they weren't the only ones involved. In about a week, everyone who was involved will be able to share their part of the story. And I mean everyone, as unfortunate as it can be. You might want to tell the whole crew, seeing as how we'll sort of be showing up in the middle of the Mushroom Kingdom._

_Cheers,_

_Link and many, many others._

Blumiere and Timpani looked at each other.

"I'll call them," Blumiere said, getting up and then offering a hand to Timpani. She took it and aided herself up, heading into the kitchen.

"I have a feeling we're going to need a lot of snacks," she muttered, recipes already swirling through her head.

The Mario Bros. looked surprised at the news, but agreed none the less to inform everyone else. Blumiere moved into the kitchen to help his wife make delicious goodies for everyone.

It's a good thing they made enough for an army, as when they walked into the designated room in Peach's Castle, that's exactly what they found. Thirty-nine different beings mingled around the room, some human, others not, some mechanical, and all of them extraordinary.

Timpani and Blumiere stood in shock for a moment before Mario ushered them in.

"I know, there's a lot. Every single one of us was needed, though. We'll introduce you to everyone, don't worry."

The couple laid the goods out on a table that already held food. A pink puffball stood nearby, surprisingly eating some food calmly. Another puffball stood nearby, a mask quickly shut over an unknown face.

"The pink one is Kirby. Don't let his age or mannerisms fool you, he's one tough cookie," Mario explained.

"Poyo!" Kirby smiled, obviously hearing the red plumber.

"That's Sir Meta Knight next to him; the knight is his mentor."

A nod came from the usually quiet knight, a steaming mug still in his hand.

"It's all right, Meta Knight. They won't care."

"Honestly, I'm a torso most the time. Legs usually just make people calmer," Blumiere admitted.

A look from the masked warrior, but then he seemed to come to some sort of agreement in his mind and lifted his mask enough to show his mouth so he could drink.

Mario nodded at the two puffballs before leaving with Blumiere and Timpani.

"Top Hat! How's it going?" Link's unmistakable voice came from behind them. "Hey Mario, I'll take them around. Bowser and Wario are fighting again."

Mario facepalmed. "Mama Mia, you'd think they'd learn…" He waved good-bye as he went to a sight of steadily increasing volume.

"Come on, I'll intro you guys to the crew." Link steered them in another direction, towards a rather strange looking group.

"Hey guys, these are Top Hat and Timpani! Say hi," Link grinned.

The only female of the group curtseyed. "Hello again, Blumiere and Timpani. Though I suppose it would just be 'hello' at this point in time."

"Paradox?" Timpani questioned.

"Paradox," she confirmed. "I am Princess Zelda, but please, just Zelda here."

The two nodded before looking at possibly the strangest member.

"Hey," he said, his voice exactly like Link's but in a higher pitch, "I'm Toon Link. It's best not to ask why or how I'm here, it makes my head hurt just thinking about it." Toon Link grabbed the side of his head, emphasizing his point.

Link nodded at the man against the wall. "That's Ganondorf… I'd suggest avoiding him. He's not exactly happy at the moment."

The couple nodded, exchanging pleasantries with the group for a few minutes before Luigi came to introduce them to another crew.

"This is King Dedede, King of Dreamland. He's from the same universe as Kirby and Meta Knight. This is Ness." Luigi gestured to a penguin in red robes and a small boy who wore a baseball cap in turn.

The couple greeted the two, receiving exchanges in reply.

"How is this all possible?" Timpani asked.

Ness shrugged. "Master Hand has a crazy brother. He allowed us to meet because he has a feeling you two may be important in the future. That, and the story 'needs to spread' or some such." The boy scratched the back of his head. "We don't really get what they mean most the time."

"Understatement!" the king exclaimed.

Luigi nodded at his two friends before dismissing the three. "Well, we did promise to explain. I'm just surprised Master Hand agreed… rather enthusiastically."

Luigi steered them off in another direction, but the two spied a familiar face waving them over. Well, maybe face isn't the right word, as it was Meta Knight.

"Come," he said, "there are many who wish to meet you. Go with Dedede and Ness, Luigi."

Luigi nodded, thanking the knight before walking off.

The Star Warrior wrapped his cape around himself before heading off, making sure the two were following him. They met with a group of five more; Marth, Ike, Snake, Lucario, and Yoshi. Kirby was hanging onto Yoshi's back gleefully, laughing as the lizard trotted in circles.

Meta Knight gestured at the young man with smooth blue hair. "This is Prince Marth. Your Highness, this is… Blumiere and Timpani, correct?"

The two nodded before bowing. "Hello, your Highness," they spoke in unison.

Marth didn't bat an eye, just inclining his head in return.

"Ike," Meta Knight introduced next. A small wave from the mercenary was the reply.

"Snake." Another nod.

"Lucario."

Lucario eyes glowed and Timpani heard a voice. _Hello,_ it rumbled, _I am Lucario. I hope you don't mind me using Telepathy to communicate…_

"Not really," Timpani replied aloud.

_Could you tell your husband that it is only me trying to communicate? He's locked up more than the Power Unit…_

Timpani smacked Blumiere's arm suddenly, surprising him. Lucario apparently settled his mind, as he loosened up shortly after.

"And you already met Yoshi and Kirby."

"Yoshi-shi-i-yosh." Yoshi inclined his head. Kirby shouted "Poyo!" again before the two became involved in themselves once again.

Meta Knight's eyes were pink when they turned back to him. "There are many more to meet. Come." With a dramatic swirl of his cape, he walked off.

"Is that why a lot of guys are wearing capes? Dramatic effect?" Timpani whispered to Blumiere.

"Part of it," the magician admitted, tugging on his own.

The two followed the masked knight, being introduced to people like Donkey and Diddy Kong, the latter of who showed them Fox and Falco. They were then introduced to Samus (who was in her Power Suit) who introduced Pikachu. This lead to a chain reaction as Pikachu insisted on them meeting all the other Pokémon: Squirtle, Ivysaur, Charizard, and Jigglypuff. The trainer of the previous three, Red, introduced Lucas, a boy with powers much like Ness's.

Mario swung by and told the knight to visit with his own friends. He then proceeded to lead them to Pit, who in turn was hanging out with Olimar, R.O.B., and Captain Falcon. No Pikmin were with Olimar, he said he was afraid of them getting trampled by the vast amount of people there.

Mario pointed out two kids who were running around, greeting Meta Knight and some of the younger fighters. "Those are the Ice Climbers; Popo is in blue and Nana is in pink."

The two oddballs were… a two dimensional man and a blue hedgehog.

"That's Mr. Game and Watch and Sonic. We're not always entirely sure of what the former is saying, seeing as how he never speaks. Peach is probably your best bet for a translation," Mario explained sheepishly.

"Hey, new faces!" The blue hedgehog was suddenly over by the trio. "You guys gonna be in the next tournament?"

Blumiere shook his head. "Evenif we got an invitation, I doubt we'd accept."

Timpani nodded. "I'm living a life-long adventure. I'd rather not throw a tourney into the mix."

Sonic shrugged. "Fair enough. Hey Mario, we might want to get this show on the road. Not all of us here are friendlies and Master Hand would kick our butts if we come back with some injuries."

Mario grimaced. "I'll get everyone." He made his way to the center of the room, took a deep breath, and yelled "_**Quiet!**__"_ at the top of his lungs, catching everyone's attention.

"Thank you. I now many, if not all of you haven't seen each other in awhile. But unless we want Master Hand after us with a vengeance, we might want to start the reason you're all here for. There's plenty of seating where I am, as you can see, so feel free to arrange yourselves as you please. Well, actually, there's one rule: if you don't get along, don't sit next to each other. Fighting isn't tolerated."

Mario picked his own seat, followed by the rest. Then they began telling the tale of the Subspace Emissary, everyone adding in what had happened to them. It got awfully quiet around the time Tabuu had turned everyone into trophies, but this is where Luigi, Ness, and Dedede all spoke up.

The man in green shivered. "Everyone was a trophy… frozen in time and space, just… standing around like vases in a room. They were all scattered throughout Subspace. Kirby was revived too, apparently, as we were only able to find half. How relieved we were to see the pink puff smiling as he led the missing persons!"

Meta Knight rubbed his student's head, getting a happy noise from the sleeping puffball.

Then they continued, Sonic explaining why he showed up so "late".

"My universe is the farthest away from this one. The Subspace had only showed up a day or two ago in my realm by that point. Tails, my best friend, was taking me there in his biplane. He said some technical talk that boils down to the destruction of the _space_ between universes, while the universes themselves were held in a sort of stasis, much like how they were now. I destroyed Tabuu's primary wings, not knowing exactly what they did but knowing it wasn't gonna be any good. He still had wings, but they weren't as powerful as the first ones."

"We all fought together and defeated Tabuu," Peach finished, "Master Hand explained that the Chains of Light dictated him, forced him to attack us even though he didn't want to. They overcame his will."

"And thus, several others'," Luigi wrapped up.

"And that was the Subspace Emissary," Mario concluded.

Blumiere could only whistle. "Wow."

Timpani nodded.

"Well then, story time's over. Let's mingle!" Daisy tried to get the morbid air out of the room. As per usual, she succeeded, everyone going around to talk with old friends and maybe ones that weren't so close. They only get to meet at the tournaments, after all!

Blumiere and Timpani pulled back from the festivities for a time. Timpani had really hit it off with Samus, R.O.B., and the Star Fox crew, chatting about mechanics and some other gizmos she had come up with.

Blumiere found good friends in Lucas, Ness, and Zelda, discussing magic and its similarities to PSI/PK powers.

As they watched their new friends mingle (and laugh at Meta Knight facepalming as he gave up on getting Kirby to _not_ inhale his food), they smiled.

"Our friends are certainly unique," Blumiere commented, arm slung around Timpani's waist.

"Like we would have them any other way," Timpani replied, stealing a quick kiss from her husband.

They certainly are… they certainly are…

**A/N: I'm going to cry, you guys. That's it. That's the end. I started this… sometime in either late November or early December of 2014. Now look; it's February 4, 2015 and we're all done. The end. El fin. It's sad. I liked writing this, the magic, the prophecies, the sass. Hell, I even got to include other Nintendo franchises without being all over the place. Overall, I'm pretty please with how this turned out. I sincerely hope that maybe there are some wanderers onboard this ship still and that they enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.**

**If you have questions about anything, my PMs are open, as is the review box below. Feel free to ask them!**

_**This story is dedicated to Chuggaaconroy on YouTube, who's Super Paper Mario Let's Play got me into this ship. The last two chapters of this story are dedicated to Monty Oum, a man who inspired me a great deal… and will now never get to know how much. He passed away during the production of this story at the age of 33. Rest in peace, wherever you may be Monty.**_

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own ideas.**

**Now for the final and most accurate count:**

**(Ending Length: 90.5 pages and 33,810 words in MS Word.)**


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